Need
by Ossiana of the B.P.R.D
Summary: Dr. Katherine Hayward comes to work at the B.P.R.D. as a research assistant to Abe. Things will get interesting as she adjusts to her new job and comes to know a certain red ape. Movie/comic-verse. HellboyOC.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Give it a chance and, who knows? You might find that you like it. Thank you and please enjoy the first chapter of Need.

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Kate had forgotten where she was until she began to wake to the light showing through her closed lids.

She yawned and observed her surroundings with sleep-heavy eyes.

She was in a taxi. Now she remembered.

She had been called by the government. "We're assigning you to do some research work. Should you accept, we will erase any evidence of your existence. You see, this is top secret," a stern voice had told her over the phone. Then they offered to send one of their agents to pick her up from her home disguised as a taxi driver.

What caused her to accept, she had no idea. It was as if she felt she had nothing to lose.

Kate wasn't married, she had no remaining family, no friends, and a job that left her with no satisfaction. She had earned her doctorate in English in college due to her love of literature and writing, but had never done anything with it. She knew a doctorate could have gotten her a million jobs that were far better than the one she'd had, but she'd insisted on remaining where she was until that morning. Working as a library assistant soon became lonely and immensely boring and this opportunity to do research work seemed too incredible to be true. Kate knew she would have been crazy to refuse the offer.

Kate glanced at her reflection in the taxi window. Her caramel colored locks were pulled tight into a bun in the center of the back of her head. The thick, plastic, black frames of her glasses surrounded her chestnut eyes. Kate was virtually blind without her glasses. Her lips adorned a rather dark shade of red lipstick. Kate moved to sit up a bit straighter and smoothed out her dark grey pencil skirt. She wore a conservative matching suit jacket and a pair of plain, black heals upon her feet.

The cab began to slow and came to an abrupt stop.

"Dr. Hayward, we're here," announced the driver.

Kate peered out the window and gazed upon a strangely shaped building composed of several cylinder shaped towers surrounded by a stone wall.

Sighing nervously, she exited the taxi, unloaded her bags and made her way towards the massive gate in front of her. When she reached the gate, she found an intercom set into the stone wall. She pushed the button below the speaker.

"Hello? I'm Dr. Katherine Hayward. I was called to-"

"Look directly into the lens, please," interrupted a voice from the intercom.

Kate obeyed when a sort of camera lens presented itself and was stunned when a bright light flashed inches from her right eye. Dazed, she picked up her bags and walked forward when the gate began to open.

After a brief walk, Kate reached a large set of doors that opened as she continued on her way. Inside was a large, practically empty room. Below her feet was a type of insignia unfamiliar to her. At the far back of the room were a desk and a man in a suit standing behind it.

"You're early," he stated nonchalantly.

"I know. I'm sorry. I thought that-"

"Stay where you are and I'll lower the elevator," he said as he pushed a button on the desk.

Immediately the ground began to move from Kate's feet as the stone tile she was standing on began to lower. The elevator took her to the lowest level of the building and Kate found herself staring at a set of huge, golden doors. Tentatively, she pushed open the doors and headed into an office and library. It was empty.

"Hello?" she spoke softly.

She absorbed her setting which included tall shelves filled with books of all sorts, a messy desk near the back wall, a large fireplace with a warm glow emitting from it, and a tank that took up an entire wall of the room. _Odd_, she thought.

"Oh, wonderful! You're here. Welcome," said a voice.

Kate looked around for the source of the voice but found no one.

"Is someone there?" she called.

There was a loud tapping sound and Kate looked at the tank to find that inside it was a fish. Well, not really a fish; it was more of a fish-man. He floated, treading water effortlessly. The creature in the tank was a bright shade of aquamarine with dark blue stripes on his back, arms and legs. His dark, almond shaped eyes studied Kate. Feeling rather awkward that she was staring at him, Kate attempted to act casual in her manner.

"He-hello. I'm-"

"Dr. Katherine Leigh Hayward. Age: 26. Born: July 23rd, 1982 to Abigail and Mitchell Hayward in Olympia, Washington. You're here about the call you received a few days ago about a job as a research assistant," stated the fish-man.

Kate was astonished. "How did you know?"

"Abe can read minds."

Kate spun around and found that a man was standing a few yards behind her. His dark brown hair was neatly trimmed with not one hair out of place and his hazel eyes were friendly and inviting. He looked impeccable in a dark grey suit and black tie. He had a boyish charm about him that gave him a welcoming look.

"I'm Agent John T. Myers. I see you've already met Agent Sapien. Abe is the brains of our operation. You'll actually be working with him," he explained.

Kate glanced back at Abe and nodded politely. "It's nice to meet you, Agent Sapien," she said quietly.

Truthfully, she was still shocked she was conversing with a fish-man who could read minds. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Abe spoke. "There's no need to be afraid, Dr. Hayward. You'll soon get used to the…different sights you may encounter here."

Myers looked at her. "I'm sure you're wondering where you are and why you're here. How much do you know?"

Kate turned to him. "I was told that I was going to be a research assistant. That's about it. The man on the phone said that this was a top secret agency and that they would need to…erase me, in a matter of speaking, from any records or files in the country."

Myers nodded. "You're at the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, the B.P.R.D. and Professor Broom chose you as a research assistant to Agent Sapien."

Kate cocked her head. Was he serious? "Paranormal research? Do you mean that I'm going to be researching…monsters?" she asked incredulously.

This had to be a joke. She looked from Abe to Myers and back again.

"Dr. Hayward," began Abe, "we are a top secret agency meant to protect the public from any type of paranormal being that could be potentially dangerous. We go out when we get a tip of beings like this causing trouble and do away with them. Many times, research is needed to defeat these entities. We must find out what they are capable of, where they come from…any useful information that can help us to battle these…monsters of sorts. Many times I find that I'm needed to help the other agents out on the field and am not able to complete all of the research needed. This is why you are here."

As Kate absorbed all of the information, Myers began to speak. "I know this is a lot to take in. Why don't I introduce you to the other agents."

Kate nodded silently. Myers turned and began to head for an open door leading to a long hallway and Kate followed. The chrome hallway was lined with cases filled with strange artifacts. Kate had been so busy examining the artifacts along the way that she practically ran straight into Myers when he stopped in front of an enormous metal door.

"I'll warn you," Myers began, looking back at her over his shoulder, "I know Abe can be a bit shocking at first, but you'll want to prepare yourself for who you're about to meet next."

With that, he turned the metal lock on the outside of the door and stood next to the opening, indicating that Kate should enter first.

The first sight she saw was a very ordinary man dressed neatly in a suit similar to Myers', watching her as she entered. He extended his hand when she neared him.

"Agent Clay. Pleasure to meet you Dr. Hayward."

Kate mumbled something in return and studied him. Why did Myers expect her to be shocked?

What shocked Kate more was the condition of the room she was standing in. There were shelves with random items placed haphazardly upon them. Near the back of the room was what seemed to be a pick-up truck serving as a makeshift bed and along the walls near the bed were countless televisions, each turned on to a different channel. The floor was littered with hundreds of pieces of paper including an astonishing number of _Baby Ruth_ candy wrappers. What was even stranger about the room were the dozens of cats occupying it. They roamed around the room, resting on the floor, shelves, the televisions, and the bed. Practically every surface of the room held a cat.

Then, Kate saw him. He was coming into the room from what she assumed was an attached bathroom and was obviously unaware of the fact that there was someone who he didn't know in his room for he wore no shirt and had a towel draped around his neck. Kate immediately knew who he was and was probably more familiar with him than Agent Myers had expected. She had grown up reading the comic books based on the character Hellboy, who was supposed to be a myth. But here he was with his bright red skin, dark hair pulled into a ponytail at the base of his neck, the horns on his forehead filed down, his stone right arm hanging limply at his side, and his piercing, yellow eyes glancing around the room. He was real.

When Hellboy sauntered into the room, he spotted Myers and Clay and acknowledged them with a nod, then took a long gulp of beer from the can in his hand. He emptied the can, then crushed it in his stone hand and threw it aside. Then he noticed Kate and froze.

Kate had to admit, finding a complete stranger in your room was a bit awkward and she felt suddenly as if she shouldn't be there. She was also finding it incredibly hard not to stare at him. Kate glanced down at her feet and was feeling not only intimidated by his presence, but by the gun he kept in the belt hooked through his black leather pants. His heavy, black boots thudded loudly as he stepped towards the three of them.

Now only a few feet from Kate, Hellboy reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigar and began to light it.

"Who've we got here?" he asked in a deep, rolling voice, putting the cigar into his mouth.

Feeling like she had hardly spoken all day, Kate forced herself to speak before she could be introduced.

"I'm Dr. Katherine Hayward."

She held out her right hand to shake his and then pulled it back suddenly when she realized his right hand was his stone hand. Hellboy looked down at her forebodingly and blew a puff of smoke in her face. Fearing she had offended him, Kate looked to Myers pleadingly and tried to suppress a cough as the smoke assaulted her senses. Myers took the hint.

"Uh, Dr. Hayward, this is Agent Hellboy. You'll also be working closely with him. You'll be responsible for briefing him on his opponents." He looked at Hellboy. "Dr. Hayward is going to be Abe's new research assistant."

Hellboy examined her. After a moment, he let out another puff of smoke in her face.

"We don't need her," he said looking her in the eye.

Kate felt the heat rise to her cheeks. She had spent eight years of her life in college earning her doctorate and worked a boring job that anyone, with or without a degree, could do. To top it all off, she had literally given up her existence in the world and she'd be damned if this big, red monkey was going to tell her she didn't deserve to be there.

He had turned to walk away from her as she spoke. "I believe that is for Professor Broom to decide. If I'm not mistaken, he was the one who sent for me."

The fact that Hellboy visibly tensed told Kate that he did not like being talked back to.

With his back to her, he said, "Listen, I don't know who the hell you think you are, but didn't you hear me? We don't need you. But thanks anyway."

Kate put her hands on her hips, watching him sit down in a black, leather chair. "I think I'm someone who damn-well deserves to be here and no one is going to tell me otherwise."

Hellboy watched her for a brief moment and then decided to turn his attention to his many televisions.

With a huff, Kate turned and walked briskly from the room, Myers and Clay on her heel. Once the door to Hellboy's room was shut, Kate stopped and stared at the two of them.

"What is his problem?" she asked, still angry.

Myers and Clay glanced at each other before Clay finally responded.

"That's Hellboy for you, Dr. Hayward."

Myers nodded in agreement. "He hated me when I first came here. He just doesn't want anything to change around here. That's just the way he is."

Kate sighed heavily, trying to calm herself down and Myers put an encouraging hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, he'll come around. C'mon, I'll show you your room." Kate smiled at him, appreciating the effort he was putting forth to help calm her nerves.

Myers gently nudged her forward and they began to walk back down the hallway.

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**A/N:** Now that most of the introductions are out of the way, I promise that things will get a little more interesting. Review.


	2. Chapter 2

After Myers had briefly shown Kate her room and she had left her bags on her new bed, Kate found herself sitting alone in Professor Broom's office waiting to meet him. Interestingly, she realized the more she waited, the more nervous she became.

Clay had spoken about him a bit during the remainder of her tour and from what she could decipher, the man was highly respected. She was beginning to worry that he had made a poor choice in her. The more she learned about the B.P.R.D., the more she realized the seriousness of the agency and she was feeling that she might not be ready for the job. Sure, she wouldn't exactly be out fighting monsters. That was Agent Hellboy's job. But, she still held a great amount of responsibility in whether or not the agents made it back in one piece.

Kate was startled when she heard a door open and watched the golden doors. A man walking with a black cane made his way slowly into the room. He wore a nice black suit and appeared to be in his late eighties. With his age came the wrinkles and large bags under his eyes which gave the impression that he had been through a great deal in his lifetime. His hair was white, as were the beard and mustache that framed his mouth and he wore a pair of wire-rimmed glasses. The expression he cast as he spotted Kate standing nervously before him showed such kindness that Kate felt herself physically relax before him.

Maybe there was nothing to be nervous about after all.

As he neared her, Kate extended her hand. "I'm Dr. Katherine Hayward. It's nice to finally meet you Professor Broom," she greeted warmly.

Professor Broom shook her hand lightly. As Kate began to pull her hand away, he held onto it and Kate looked at him.

Broom smiled lightheartedly. "Don't worry, my dear. You'll do fine," he reassured her.

Kate narrowed her eyes and smiled confusedly.

"I may not be like Agent Sapien, Dr. Hayward. I can not read minds. But I am, however, very good at reading faces," Broom said with a smile.

He let go of her hand and sat down where Kate had been sitting previously. Kate sat in a chair across from him.

"Now, I've been informed that you only arrived recently, Dr. Hayward. I know that Agent Sapien has told you what we do here at the Bureau. I do not expect that anyone has explained why I chose you for this position."

Kate shook her head silently, waiting for him to continue.

Broom sighed and looked at her over the top of his glasses. "Dr., what we do here is very important. Everyone here, no matter what job they may have, must be able to do it efficiently and well. You were chosen from a list containing many others who were just as qualified as you are. I trust that you won't disappoint me."

Kate noticed that her mouth was becoming quite dry and when she attempted to speak, she only emitted a tiny squeak. She felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment.

Professor Broom chuckled. "I've spoken with a number of your professors who have all assured me that there is no one better for this position than you."

The small sense of pride Kate felt with his comment was almost enough to calm her nerves.

"Professor, what if...what if I turn out to be not what you expected?" she asked, still a bit worried that she wasn't up for the challenge.

Broom's face displayed utter seriousness when he said, "You're ability to do well or to do poorly here all depends on the confidence you have in yourself."

With that, he stood up slowly and began to walk across the room and up a spiral staircase. Kate stared after him. The exchange had been so short that she hardly felt like anything had transpired between them.

"Professor," she called after him.

Broom paused halfway up the stairs and looked down at her over his shoulder.

Kate glanced down at her feet for a moment, thinking. Finally, she spoke. "I won't disappoint you."

With a slight nod in her direction, he began continuing his way up the stairs while replying, "You'll do well here, Dr. Hayward."

Once Professor Broom had left the room, Kate released the breath she hadn't known she'd been holding in. Telling herself that she shouldn't be as worried as she was, she stood up and gazed upon the empty room. It wasn't that she was a nervous person, but Kate was finding that the secrecy and seriousness of the agency combined with the overwhelming amount of new information she was receiving was taking its toll on her nerves. She sighed, disgusted with how weak-minded she felt. Soon, she'd get into the swing of things and prove to everyone that she was meant to be here.

Her thoughts were interrupted when the doors behind her were thrust open. In strode none other than Hellboy, appearing very agitated.

Without looking at Kate, he continued to walk into the room and asked, "Is father home?"

Kate cocked her head and crossed her arms.

"You mean Professor Broom?" she asked on a whim.

Was Broom his father?

Hellboy continued roaming around the room. Kate wondered why he kept looking. It was obvious Broom wasn't there. When he didn't answer, Kate decided that she must have been right and spoke.

"He was just here. He went that way," she said, pointing at the spiral staircase.

Hellboy stopped and finally faced her.

Studying her, he put his hands on his hips. "Why are you here?" he asked with a little less menace than his voice had held earlier.

Kate let her arms fall limply to her sides in defeat.

"I told you. Professor Broom requested that-"

"No, why are you _really_ here?"

Kate thought about what she realized in the taxi earlier.

She had nothing to lose, right? But, was that it?

"Why should you care?" she shot back.

When he continued to stare at her, she slumped into a chair.

"I felt like…this was my chance."

She sighed and began pulling at a loose thread at the hem of her skirt.

"I mean, I didn't even know where I was going or what I'd be doing. It just seemed like I was meant to do this, that this would give me the chance to prove myself. And…ugh, God, why the hell am I telling you this anyway?"

She pushed herself out of the chair with a little too much force and looked defiantly at him.

"What is this, a test or something? What's your problem?" she asked, becoming more irritated by the second.

She hadn't meant to tell him so much. Once to words started to pour from her mouth, she couldn't stop them. Kate was feeling much too vulnerable for comfort. She almost never told anyone what she was feeling.

Hellboy held up his index finger and opened his mouth to speak and then thought better of it, letting his hand fall back at his side.

"Just trying to see what you're made of, kid," he said simply.

Kate then realized that this might be his way of getting to know her better.

"Listen, I-" Kate began, but was interrupted when someone strode into the office in the same manner that Hellboy had.

The man, dressed in a casual suit as everyone here seemed to be, was holding a manila folder in his hand labeled "top secret".

"See this? You're going to ruin us. This is the last straw!" he yelled as he approached Kate and Hellboy.

Hellboy scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Don't know what you're talking about," he responded casually.

The man stopped in front of him and snorted disbelievingly.

"Look at this," he said, indicating the folder which he had begun to open.

He sorted through various pictures of Hellboy. Most of them were fairly unclear but obviously of him. Each picture that the man showed included Hellboy out and about around the city.

Hellboy looked at the pictures and shook his head. "So?"

The man ran a hand over his bald head anxiously.

"This agency is secret, Hellboy, top secret. You can't be seen!"

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the nervous sweat from his brow. It wasn't until then he noticed Kate.

"Who are you?" he asked.

Kate looked up from the pictures in his hand.

"Oh, sorry. Dr. Katherine Hayward," she introduced herself.

The man considered her for a moment and then nodded.

"The new research assistant, right? I'm Tom Manning."

The following silence told Kate that the conversation she had been listening in on was not meant for her ears.

Feeling suddenly uncomfortable, Kate decided to excuse herself.

"I'll leave you two gentlemen to your business. It was a pleasure to meet you," she said, indicating Manning.

He nodded at her and turned his attention back to Hellboy.

As Kate made her way across the room, she glanced back at Hellboy and met his eyes. She stared at him a moment too long before she realized what she was doing and then left the office through the door leading to the chrome hallway.

Trying to remember where her room was, Kate wandered through various hallways until she found the right door. She reached into her pocket and produced a card which she slipped into a slot in the door and the door was unlocked.

The room was as she remembered it; it was empty and cold. The walls were chrome, as much of the inside of the building was with the exception of Professor Broom's office. At the back of the room was a metal bed with a white cover and white pillows. On one side of the bed was a metal nightstand and to her left was a metal desk. The adjoining bathroom matched the room in that it was just as plain. Everything was chrome and what wasn't chrome was white.

Kate sighed and walked into the bathroom, taking a look at herself in the mirror. She wrinkled her nose at the sight of herself. It wasn't often that Kate wore much makeup and what she had put on today in order to look presentable was atrocious. Immediately, she reached for a tissue from the box on the counter, wiped off the red lipstick and then washed off the excessive amounts of mascara and blush she applied earlier that day.

After washing her face, Kate walked back into her room and fell on her bed.

The day had been exhausting, but Kate was sure of one thing; life at the B.P.R.D. would never be dull.

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**A/N: **Thank you for the lovely reviews! Keep them coming. It gives me the incentive to write. ;)


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, Kate found herself flipping through books in Professor Broom's library.

Knowing nothing about monsters or any type of paranormal being, she decided to do some reading and prepare herself. Being the library assistant she was, she had been cataloging books as she explored, allowing for easy reference. The more she studied, the more she began to understand about the paranormal world. The creatures were fascinating. Kate was especially fascinated with the power of mind control that some beings possessed.

The entire day, Kate had hardly spoken with anyone. She had spoken briefly a few times with Agent Sapien when a question about her reading arose. Since her short meeting with Professor Broom, Kate had not seen him. Hellboy, she heard, was confined to his room. Myers mentioned that Professor Broom grounded Hellboy after being shown the photos Kate had seen Manning with.

Sighing and closing the book in her hands, Kate leaned back in her chair and stared at the ceiling. Nothing eventful happened all day. She was told that an alarm would be raised when an emergency, such as an otherworldly appearance, presented itself. Kate found it incredibly tense, waiting for something to happen. Myers was the only one that seemed to understand her nervousness. The night before, they had shared with each other their experiences arriving at the B.P.R.D., and she was grateful that he was going out of his way to make her feel comfortable.

Kate grabbed a stack of books and placed them in her bag which was sitting on the floor next to her. She sighed again, grabbed her bag, and stood up, planning on heading back to her room. Grabbing one more book from the desk, Kate made her way out of the library and into the chrome hallway.

As she walked, she opened the book and began to read. On the page she opened to was one of the most interesting creatures she'd seen yet. The being was surprisingly anthropomorphic with the exception of the ghostly qualities it possessed. The caption below its picture described the creature as shadowy, almost wraith-like with skin that absorbed light. Its golden eyes were mere slits, giving it the gift of enhanced vision and resistance to glare. While not a ghost, this creature was spirit-like, possessing the ability to glide along and pass through solid objects. Not only could it do this, but the being also had the extraordinary power of mind assault, which allowed it to cause extreme damage or any type of emotion in another's mind. Unlike some of the monsters she had read about, the book mentioned that this creature was not unintelligent either. Its brain was just as advanced as any human brain.

Kate wasn't able to study the being more closely for she abruptly collided with something rock hard and fell flat on her bottom. Stunned, Kate glanced up from her position on the floor and was surprised to see Hellboy staring down at her. After straightening her glasses which had become askew during the collision, she glared at him.

"Aren't you grounded?" she asked with a satisfied grin, knowing he was not supposed to be outside of his room.

Rolling his eyes, Hellboy held a hand out to help her up. Kate ignored his hand and lifted herself off the floor.

"Listen. Don't tell anyone, okay?" Hellboy said, and continued on his way.

Kate watched him go in astonishment. How could he let her jeopardize her job to cover for him?

"What makes you think I won't run into someone on the way back to my room and tell them you've gone?" she called to him with a smirk.

Hellboy paused and turned back to face her.

"Damn. You really can't make this easy on me, can you?" he said, sighing.

Kate placed her hands on her hips and watched him think. She didn't expect him to walk towards her and grab her arm. Kate struggled against his hold as he dragged her down the hallway.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she yelled, trying to pull free.

He continued walking and didn't face her when he spoke.

"You can't tell anyone I'm gone if I take you with me," he replied coolly.

Kate stopped struggling and let him pull her. "I am not going to lose my job because you wanted to sneak out. I'll just tell Clay when I get back and-"

Hellboy stopped abruptly and peered at her, inches from her face.

"I wouldn't if I were you. I can either make your life hell here, or we can at least try to play nice. Got it?" he warned.

Trying her best not to appear intimidated, Kate nodded and followed him closely as they moved quietly through various hallways. Kate realized Hellboy must have done this often when they were outside the B.P.R.D. in less than fifteen minutes. Side by side, they strode down the street and away from the Bureau. Kate breathed in the crisp October air and glanced up at Hellboy who seemed to be deep in thought. Uncomfortable with the silence, Kate reached into her bag and pulled out the book she'd been reading to distract herself. She began flipping through the pages, trying to find the creature she'd been reading about earlier, but was unable to find it. The noise Kate had been making with the pages must have caught Hellboy's attention because he suddenly grabbed the book out of her hands and glanced at the cover.

"What are you reading?" he asked, opening the book and studying the pages.

Kate yanked the book back from him.

"I _was_ trying to study before you walked into me," Kate snapped, shoving the book back into her bag.

Hellboy stopped. "Look, I get it. You don't like me. The fact is, we'll eventually have to work together and we might as well at least try to get along, okay?"

Kate studied him. "I'm only treating you the way you've been treating me since I arrived. If you want us to get along, then I suggest you start showing me some respect and I'll treat you the same," she spat, trying to no avail to keep her temper.

Hellboy glared at her then continued walking without saying a word. Kate smiled to herself. The fact that he didn't argue must have meant that they had reached an understanding. They walked in silence for another fifteen minutes or so. Kate stared down the empty street. The last thing she thought she'd ever be doing was walking down an empty street at midnight with Hellboy, the comic book character she read about for years. She was so lost in her thoughts that when she looked around she realized that Hellboy wasn't there. Turning around, Kate spotted him standing in the street, staring at a large building. She walked back to him and once she was standing next to him, she followed his gaze. The sign on the building read 'Bellamie Hospital'. Kate glanced at Hellboy and watched him gaze longingly at the building.

"Somebody you know there?" she asked softly.

Hellboy continued to stare at the building. "Yeah."

Kate knew that look. Guessing, she asked, "Who is she?"

She expected him to get angry with her for trying to pry into his personal life, but all he did was sigh.

"It doesn't matter. She won't come back," he whispered sadly, shoving his hands in his pockets and turning away from the building. He began walking back down the street.

"C'mon, we should get back," he said solemnly.

Kate looked back at the building. The conversation they had the day before came to mind. In a way, he'd just confided in her as she had in him. It began to dawn on her that the reason for his hostility toward her may be the result of a broken heart. She watched him walking away and then glanced at the building one last time. She doubted she would ever know who this woman was or what she really meant to him, but at least she found out one thing; he wasn't as heartless as he tried to come off.

Kate caught up with him and they walked to the B.P.R.D. in silence. When they arrived back, they began to head separate directions to return to their rooms when Kate surprised herself.

"Agent Hellboy," she called to him down the hallway.

He paused and watched her over his shoulder.

Kate cleared her throat. "I won't uh…I won't tell anyone."

Kate could have sworn she saw his mouth curve into a slight smile.

"Thanks," he responded quietly. He headed to his room.

Kate remained there for a moment, reflecting on what had just happened and then began walking back to her room. She had just reached her door when a blaring alarm sounded. Kate's heart began to pound as she saw the flashing red light on the wall. Immediately, she pulled the radio she'd been given the day before from her bag and turned it on, putting the ear-piece in place afterwards. Not knowing what to do, she began running down the hallway, searching for someone who could tell her what was going on. She spotted Myers first.

"Agent Myers!" she called to him.

He saw her and made his way towards her.

"What is it?" Kate asked worriedly.

Myers glanced at her and then checked to see if his gun was loaded.

"There's been a murder. That's what's weird. We usually deal with break-ins or theft. Someone was murdered and, supposedly, that's it. But, we'll find out for sure when we get there."

Like Kate, he attached his ear-piece and made sure that his radio was on before heading back down the hallway.

Kate watched him. "Do I go?"

Myers turned and smiled sympathetically at her.

"No. Go to the library and stay there. Abe will need you to look up some information depending on what he finds out."

With that, he left, leaving Kate alone.

Once Kate arrived in the library, she watched everyone meet and then leave together, including Professor Broom who placed a comforting hand gently on her shoulder before he left. Kate must have appeared more nervous than she thought. Soon, she was alone in the library, waiting for someone to contact her and tell her what to do. She found that she was constantly wiping her clammy hands on the conservative business suit she wore. It wasn't until an hour later that her radio crackled.

"Hello?" she called into it.

She waited.

"Dr. Hayward. Are you there?" It was Agent Sapien's voice.

"Yes, yes. I'm here. What's going on?" Kate replied.

There was a moment of silence before he responded.

"Dr. Hayward, take this down if you're able. The victim is Andres Hardy. Age: 66. He was found on the living room floor of his apartment, face down. There are no visible injuries, and no obvious cause of death. Listen to this, though. Agent Myers says he has just questioned the man's wife who said that she arrived home and found him dead but saw what she considered to be a ghostly figure fleeing the scene. I've not known any ghost to inflict this type of damage or at least, not without visible injuries to the victim."

Kate had stopped writing after he mentioned a 'ghostly figure'. Quickly, she dived for her bag and found the book she had been reading earlier.

"Agent Sapien," she said into her radio, "did the wife describe the figure in any more detail?"

Kate found the page with the creature she had studied earlier and waited for Agent Sapien's response.

"Agent Myers says she spoke of the figure having bright golden eyes."

"It's just a guess," Kate began, "but I think I know what killed this man. You said there was no obvious cause of death. What if something killed him from the inside? Could something have destroyed his mind?"

Kate waited anxiously for the reply.

"It's possible, I suppose. If a creature possesses a strong power of mind control it's possible that it could have done damage to the central nervous system. What is the name of the creature you're looking at?"

Kate read the name at the top of the page.

"It's called Ystehogol."

Silence followed her answer and Kate began to worry.

"Agent Sapien?"

Finally, he spoke.

"Dr. Hayward, are you sure? If this is Ystehogol we are dealing with, the situation may be more serious than we thought."

* * *

**A/N:** Thank you for the feedback! Review. I appreciate it. :D


	4. Chapter 4

The library was silent.

Kate sat on the floor among a plethora of books, each tagged with notes and markers. Silently, she flipped through pages of various books, occasionally jotting down a note or two and mumbling to herself. The other inhabitants of the room were not as occupied.

Abe was pacing, thinking to himself. Manning stood in the far corner of the room, smoking a cigar, as he usually was, and glanced around the room with a stern expression. Myers was walking aimlessly while reading a tattered copy of _The Catcher in the Rye_by J.D. Salinger, a nervous sweat forming at his brow. Professor Broom was sitting calmly in a chair, hands folded neatly in his lap. His eyes were closed as if he was contemplating something important. Hellboy was reclined back on the couch. He watched everyone as they went about their business. Finally, he sighed loudly.

"Damn it, Abe. Ystehogol is a myth. Everyone knows that. Whatever killed that guy is still out there and we're wasting our time here doing research while I could be out there tracking down the son of a bitch that did it," he argued, pulling a cigar out of his pocket.

Abe stilled and watched him. "Don't be hasty, Red. We need to know what we're up against. It is possible that he may only be a myth, but Dr. Hayward is right; there are many similarities between the description we received from Mrs. Hardy and Ystehogol."

Hellboy rolled his eyes while he lit his cigar. "Alright, let's pretend he isn't a myth. What could make him come out of hiding after...how many years was it?"

Searching for the number in one of the many books surrounding her, Kate answered him promptly. "One hundred."

Hellboy nodded and glared at Abe defiantly. Abe began to speak, but then stopped and regarded Professor Broom as if he had sensed that the older man had something to say.

Professor Broom shifted slightly in his seat and gazed out among the group. "There is something that must be taken into account; Andres Hardy was a former agent at the Bureau."

Everyone tensed. Myers put his book down and glanced up in shock. Kate immediately stopped what she was doing. Manning almost let the cigar fall from his mouth. Abe and Hellboy seemed to be the only two who did not react and it was obvious they had already known.

"Do you think…did this creature know?" asked Myers quietly.

Manning snorted derisively. "That's impossible. Our agents are sworn to secrecy and any record of them having ever worked here is terminated when they resign."

"All this man had to do was know he was previously an agent here and Ystehogol would have known too. He's a mind reader and manipulator. Any thought or memory that was in Mr. Hardy's mind was in Ystehogol's as well," explained Kate, examining the picture she had found earlier of the creature. His golden eyes stared up at her from the page and she could only imagine having those eyes be a person's last sight before death.

"That's right. We must discover why Ystehogol targeted this man and if his reason had any connection with Mr. Hardy's work here," Abe noted.

The room became silent once more. Kate glanced at the clock on Professor Broom's desk. It was four in the morning.

As if he read her mind, Professor Broom said, "I think it would be wise for us to continue this discussion after we've had some rest."

Kate silently thanked him and began putting away the books she'd been using. Everyone dispersed and went their separate ways, eager to get some sleep after the long night. Kate continued to tidy up, but still felt a presence in the room. She glanced around and found that Abe was staring straight at her.

"Agent Sapien?"

Abe tilted his head at her. "I was just recalling how nervous you seemed the other day when you arrived," he said.

Kate felt that he had more to say, so she waited.

"Dr. Hayward, you handled yourself beautifully. I wanted to let you know that."

Kate shrugged. "It's my job," she replied plainly.

"You wanted to prove yourself and I think you have accomplished that this morning," Abe explained.

Kate knew she had not told him about that. "You read my mind," she said, chuckling and crossing her arms.

Abe shook his head. "It was in your eyes."

Kate smiled slightly and then started towards her room.

"Dr. Hayward," Abe called to her.

She stopped and looked back at him.

"You really must call me Abe. There's no need for formalities," he said.

Kate nodded. "Then you can call me-"

"Kate. I know."

Kate grinned, amused, then continued on to her room. Though she may not have shown it, Kate was extremely grateful for the praise Abe had given her. For the first time since her arrival, she felt comfortable with her surroundings, feeling more as if she belonged at the Bureau. When she reached her door, she realized it was pointless to sleep. She found that she was not as tired as she thought and decided to head to the kitchen for some coffee. The search lasted about ten minutes, but soon Kate found herself standing in the kitchen. After making herself some coffee and loading it with excessive amounts of cream and sugar, Kate sat down at the table in the center of the room. It wasn't long before she had company. Kate realized she never turned the light on and when someone flipped the light switch, she heard a gasp.

"Jesus," exclaimed Myers.

With his hand over his heart, he looked exasperated.

"You scared me," he admitted.

Kate giggled and motioned to the coffee maker. "It's fresh if you want some."

Myers nodded and headed to the counter. After he poured himself a cup, he joined her at the table.

"You weren't tired either?" asked Myers, sipping his coffee.

"No. I figured I'd have to be up soon anyway so there wasn't much point in sleeping. What's your excuse?"

Myers ran a hand through his hair in exhaustion. "There's something about seeing someone's lifeless body who you know had a job, a family…a life. I don't know…it's not like I haven't seen it before, but it gets to me every time, you know?"

He paused and sighed. "I'm sorry, you shouldn't have to hear this."

Kate shook her head and watched him sympathetically.

"No, no. I understand. I couldn't imagine being faced with what you and the other agents do all the time," she told him.

The image of Ystehogol's eyes briefly came to mind and Kate shuddered. Myers watched her add some sugar to her cup and stir it in. They were silent for a moment before Myers decided to change the subject.

"You know, I was looking for you earlier," he said.

Kate looked up at him.

"I went for a walk," she answered casually.

As much as she and Hellboy hadn't been getting along, she wasn't about to go back on her word.

"Why were you looking for me?" she asked, suddenly curious.

Myers shrugged.

"Just wanted to talk," he replied.

Kate smiled sadly and looked down at her coffee. "I understand you're trying to make me feel welcome here, but you don't need to go out of your way to do it. I'll be alright."

She glanced back up at him and he gave her a lopsided grin.

"It's not like I'm forcing myself to do anything. I want to talk to you. It couldn't hurt you to have a friend while you're here either."

He chuckled and leaned over the table.

"Besides, I've already seen how you and Hellboy are together and I don't think that friendship is going anywhere fast."

Kate laughed, remembering her first encounter with Hellboy. It was then she realized how long it had been since she laughed. It felt good to laugh like that.

Sighing, she looked at Myers. "Listen, I've been acting really out of character lately. The person you met the other day isn't me. These past couple days with the new job and the new people and new situations have just been so overwhelming and I don't, uh…I just don't want you to think I'm this stiff, boring, nervous person all the time."

Kate paused and waited for him to say something. Looking her directly in the eye, he smiled warmly at her.

"Then why don't we go out for coffee later tonight and we can swap likes, dislikes, life stories, whatever you want," he offered lightheartedly.

Kate looked gratefully at him.

"Good, because I'm really going to need that coffee later," she joked.

A while later, the two decided that it was time they returned to their rooms and once Kate had shut her door, she threw her glasses onto the nightstand. Not bothering to change, she flopped onto her bed.

Within moments she was asleep, but it would not be the restful sleep she had hoped for.

* * *

**A/N: **Thank you reviewers! I'm sorry for the lack of Hellboy in this chapter, but there will be plenty of him to come. Review, please!


	5. Chapter 5

_There was nothing. _

_What had once been the office of Professor Broom filled with various trinkets and artifacts and a wide assortment of books was completely empty. The shelves were bare, the comfortable furniture was missing, and the warm glow of the ever-present fire had been replaced with darkness. Even the tank seemed eerily still. _

_Kate wandered into the deserted room. _

_"Hello?" she yelled into the darkness. _

_With each step she took, an immense fear was beginning to seize her. _

_Suddenly, she was unable to move. She made a vain attempt to move her legs, but her feet were planted firmly in place. _

_The room was rapidly becoming colder and Kate desperately wanted to leave. It was then that she realized she wasn't alone. _

_A dull laughter was ringing in her ears, and she frantically looked about for its source. _

_"Your fear warms my soul," said a dark voice. _

_The laughter resumed. _

_"Who are you?" Kate whispered, now more afraid than ever. _

_The laughter came to an abrupt halt and when the voice came again, it was directly behind her. _

_"The question, my dear, is who are **you**?" _

_Kate knew she shouldn't answer. A sudden wave of pain came over her and she felt as though someone had given a strong blow to the back of her head, but no one had touched her. _

_"Answer me!" the voice screamed. _

_Kate visibly flinched, but did not reply. _

_The pain washed over her again, and this time she fell forward. Her breathing was shallow as she pulled herself up off the floor. As she did so, she glanced at the tank in front of her and saw the reflection of a golden glow which disappeared as quickly as she had seen it. _

_"What do you want?" Kate yelled, now completely terrified. _

_The room filled with wicked laughter that continued to grow louder. Kate covered her ears and felt tears sting her eyes. _

_"Stop! Please…" she cried._

An alarm pulled Kate from the nightmare.

Rolling over, she looked at the clock. It was already eight in the morning.

She sat up slowly and realized she had never bothered to change for she was still in the suit she had worn yesterday. Kate stretched and cracked her knuckles. She rose from the bed, took her glasses from the nightstand and put them on, and made her way over to the bathroom.

As she brushed her teeth, Kate glanced at herself in the mirror. To say that she was pale would have been putting it lightly. Her hair had fallen from her tight bun and now was tangled and unruly. Even her eyes seemed dull. If that wasn't enough, she had a throbbing headache.

Kate decided she would feel better after having a shower. She had been washing her hair when she discovered the large bruise on the back of her head.

_Huh_, she thought, _I must have fallen out of bed last night_.

After her shower, she chose a conservative pantsuit from her closet, pulled her hair into her traditional bun, slipped on a pair of heels, and left her room.

Kate surprised herself when she stumbled upon the kitchen with ease and popped in to grab a cup of coffee. She hadn't noticed the room was already occupied until she after she poured her coffee. With a start, she noticed Hellboy leaning back in a chair, casually drinking a beer. Greatly startled, she'd almost spilled the contents of her cup. Hellboy watched her with a smirk but said nothing. Kate glared at him. She wasn't exactly in the mood to be patronized for being jumpy this morning after the night she had.

"A little early for a beer, isn't it?" she said, turning back to the counter and dumping a few spoonfuls of sugar in her cup.

Hellboy took a long gulp before responding.

"It's never too early for a beer," he retorted.

Kate faced him again and rolled her eyes before heading for the door.

She stopped when she heard him say, "What's the rush?"

Kate looked back at him. "I was going to get a head start searching for some background information on Andres Hardy before-"

"Nothing's gonna happen in the next five minutes," he interrupted, indicating the chair across from him at the table.

Kate sighed and took a seat.

"How can you be so calm about all of this?" she asked, appalled.

Hellboy took another drink.

"I've been working here a lot longer than you have and I've learned something; these monsters don't think like you or me. They don't plan. It doesn't take research to bring down a monster 'cause research isn't gonna get you anywhere. All it takes is brute strength," he explained before getting up to grab another beer from the fridge.

"But, how do you know that these monsters can't strategize or have motives or reasons for what they do?" Kate asked, watching him open a new can of beer.

Hellboy leaned against the counter. "'Cause monsters kill for two reasons and two reasons only; they kill for food, or they kill for the sake of killing."

"But what about Ystehogol? It wasn't just coincidence that he killed a man who was previously a B.P.R.D. agent."

Hellboy watched her incredulously. "Look, you and Abe don't get it. Ystehogol is a myth. You're wasting your time if you think he's the one behind this 'cause he doesn't exist."

Kate shook her head. "I think you're wrong."

She took a sip of her coffee while she watched Hellboy shrug.

"Fine. Think whatever you want."

Kate put her head in her hands. With the splitting headache she had she was in no condition to argue and decided to give it up. The two were silent for a minute or so before Hellboy decided to speak.

"So, you excited for your date tonight?" he asked sarcastically.

Kate perked up immediately. "You were eavesdropping?"

Hellboy held up his hands in defense. "Hey, I was just going to my room when I heard you two in here."

"Okay, so you were eavesdropping," Kate stated.

Rolling his eyes in defeat, Hellboy said, "Yeah, okay, fine. I was eavesdropping."

There was a pause before he continued. "You and Myers getting close?"

Kate shrugged and began tracing the rim of her cup with her finger. She wasn't going to make Hellboy think that something was going on between her and Myers that wasn't. God, would he have a field day with that. No, if she got defensive about him prying into her personal life he'd just assume he struck a nerve.

"Not really. But, at least he treats me like I belong here," she answered nonchalantly while giving Hellboy a knowing glare.

Kate was tired of Hellboy belittling her and making her feel unwanted at the Bureau. She couldn't believe he'd already gone as far as to say research was pointless in their field.

The sarcastic laugh that resonated from Hellboy only annoyed her further.

"Damn. You must like him a lot if you're trying to be this casual about it."

Kate couldn't believe it. Not only had he thought her dismissal of his question was reason to believe she and Myers were on the verge of a relationship, but he completely ignored her obvious attempt to let him know that his disapproval of her was becoming hurtful. Truthfully, she wasn't sure why it hurt so much for him to not want her working at the B.P.R.D., and she was quickly becoming frustrated with herself for being so affected by his words.

She hardly even realized she'd stood up and headed for the door. The hand that grasped her shoulder brought her to an abrupt halt.

"Hey, kid, you mad?" asked Hellboy from behind her.

Kate sighed and shrugged his hand off her shoulder. More than anything, Kate was furious with herself. The fact that Hellboy seemed to have a power over her was making her feel weak. Her whole life she'd been a strong person and the idea that someone could so easily have this power over her emotions was unnerving. It was too much.

Kate took a shaky breath and couldn't find the words to respond to him.

Instead, he spoke again. "It's none of my business, I guess."

She knew this was Hellboy's attempt to apologize for prying.

After calming herself down, Kate turned around.

With a laugh, she said, "I guess you're going to be tapping my phone line next, huh?"

Hellboy seemed to have understood the masked acceptance to his apology and smirked down at her.

"You're okay, kid," he complimented, rather awkwardly.

Neither one knowing what to do after the warm moment, Kate cleared her throat while Hellboy scratched the back of his neck.

"Well, I'd better get started on that research. I'll see you later…I suppose."

Kate turned around and smacked her forehead in embarrassment.

As she made her way out of the kitchen, she heard Hellboy whisper sarcastically, "Have fun on your date."

She heard him snickering. Quickly, she looked back at him and stuck out her tongue before leaving.

Satisfied, Kate continued down the hallway. It had taken a lot of searching and quickly asking directions from Agent Clay whom she passed, but eventually she ended up in the archive room. The completely chrome room contained nothing but files and a computer positioned directly in the center. About three hours of browsing through files passed before Kate realized that finding information on Andres Hardy wasn't going to be easy.

_Ugh, Manning had to insist on getting rid of the stupid files_, she thought.

When she understood searching though files wasn't going to get her anywhere, Kate moved on to the computer. An hour later, this proved to be no more successful than the files.

Kate pounded the keyboard in frustration.

How was she going to find Ystehogol's motive for this murder if there was no information anywhere on Andres Hardy?

The solution came to her just as she had almost given up. His wife would have known him better than anyone. The information Kate needed would have to come from a visit to the Hardy household.

She glanced at the clock on the wall. It was only twelve thirty in the afternoon. Perfect. There was plenty of time to go interview Mrs. Hardy.

With her objective in mind, Kate quickly stopped by her room to grab a notebook, pen, and her bag before setting out to pay Mrs. Hardy a visit.

* * *

**A/N: **Please take the time to write a review. It doesn't take long, but just tell me how you feel about the story. Thank you! :D


	6. Chapter 6

Hellboy lazed in his leather chair, his yellow eyes glued to the television as he flipped channels. He finished up the _Baby Ruth _candy bar he'd been eating and tossed the wrapper over his shoulder. When he noticed a picture of himself on the television screen, he paused and leaned forward in his seat. The picture was blurred and Hellboy's profile was barely visible. Hellboy chuckled and watched as the picture disappeared and two men were shown having a conversation on a morning talk-show.

"So, what exactly are you claiming Hellboy does for a living?" asked the talk-show host, looking expectantly at his interviewee.

The man opposite him shifted in his seat.

"I kid you not; he hunts monsters. This thing works for the government as a monster hunter."

A collective gasp of awe came from the studio audience.

The host leaned his chin on his hands. "A monster hunter, huh? Interesting. Well, we have Dr. Tom Manning, Head of Special Operations at the F.B.I., on the phone to discuss this with us. Uh, Dr. Manning? Are you there?"

There was a moment of silence before Manning's voice was heard.

"Yes, Bob. I'm here."

"Dr. Manning, this man claims that our favorite comic book character, Hellboy, is real and works for our own government. What do you have to say to that?"

Hellboy leaned back in his chair and continued to watch intently as Manning's voice came again.

"Bob, this uh…uh, Hellboy, is it? A complete hoax. If this thing existed, let alone worked for our own government, I'm sure we'd know about it. Look, if a big, red creature with horns and a tail was walking around Washington D.C., I think there would be clearer pictures of it."

The audience laughed with relief at Manning's response.

"What about the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense? Isn't this where Hellboy is supposed to be working? Could this really be a secret government organization?" asked the host.

Manning's laughter came in response to his questions.

"I guarantee, there's no such thing."

Hellboy turned off the television and laughed. He grabbed the beer can on the table next to him and drank it all in one gulp, throwing it aside when he was through.

_Psh, "too early for a beer"_, he mused, remembering his conversation with Dr. Hayward earlier.

Damn, she could be irritating.

As much as Hellboy hated to admit it, she was the only one outside of his father who had ever made him reflect on the way he acted.

Hellboy knew that he was constantly stepping all over Clay and Myers, but they always let it go. They were too afraid of him to talk back. Abe was always willing to converse with Hellboy, but half the time Abe was talking Hellboy either wasn't listening or didn't understand what he'd said. Manning loved to talk about Hellboy's flaws, but with him it was simple; just ignore him. Then again, if that didn't work, throwing something big at his head was always just as effective, if not more.

It was different with Dr. Hayward. He couldn't explain how, but things were just...different with her.

But, what the hell was the deal with her and Myers? If he knew Myers, which he did, and if he knew her, which he also did, then he knew she'd step all over him like he did on a daily basis. The last thing Myers needed was someone else berating him constantly. It wasn't like Hellboy liked him _that_ much, but they had been through a lot together and he felt for the guy.

At some point as he thought, the word jealous came to mind. Hellboy scoffed at the idea. Ha, jealous? What a joke. He hardly knew Dr. Hayward and besides, she was a pain in the ass.

He laughed again at the idea and got up to get another beer. It was then Myers came through the door with a cart full of sandwiches.

"Lunch already?" Hellboy asked, taking a beer out of his mini-fridge.

"Yeah, it's twelve-thirty. Just because you've been moping around drinking beer and watching TV all morning doesn't mean the day just comes to a stop for you," Myers said, taking the trays of food off the cart and placing them on the table with care not to spill.

Myers knew him too well, Hellboy realized.

Wait! Was that…nah, no way. Hellboy could have sworn that had been sarcasm, but from Myers? No, it couldn't have been.

He snorted in amusement to himself.

"What's so funny?"

Hellboy glanced at Myers who was eyeing him expectantly.

"Nothing. Hey, I heard you and the good doctor are heading out on a date tonight."

He couldn't resist making Myers uncomfortable. But Myers' reaction was not what Hellboy had expected. Myers smiled lightheartedly at him and proceeded to take a huge bowl of potato chips off the cart.

"Yeah. Kate's really great. You should get to know her better. But really, it's not a date. We're just going out for some coffee, that's all."

Hellboy cocked his head. "Kate?"

As he placed the potato chips on the table, Myers said, "Mm-hmm. You're not still calling her 'Dr. Hayward' are you? Or did she not tell you to call her Kate?"

Hellboy scratched the back of his head while Myers was distracted.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, sure she did. We uh, actually talked for a while this morning. Seen her around anywhere?"

He had the strangest urge to find her.

"Uh, no. I haven't seen her since last night."

Hellboy perked up. "Last night?"

He decided it was best to play dumb about his discovery of them in the kitchen the night before.

"Yeah, after we left the library we met up in the kitchen. Jesus, we must have talked for a couple hours or something. You need anything else?"

Hellboy snapped out of a daze. "What?"

Myers was already heading for the door.

"Need anything else before I go? Manning called me and some of the other guys in for a conference and I'm already late."

Sitting back down in his chair, Hellboy waved him off.

"Nah, I'm good. See you around."

Myers nodded and left Hellboy to his food.

Shoving a sandwich in his mouth, Hellboy began pondering what Myers had said.

They talked for two whole hours last night? Hellboy could barely hold a five minute conversation with anyone let alone _her_. And what was with him thinking so highly of her? 'She's great,' he'd said. Hmm. Myers had never said anything like that about anyone else. And he called her Kate. What the hell was with that?

Hellboy forced himself to put the thought aside and stuffed a handful of potato chips in his mouth. Oh, well. He'd worry about it later. When there was food in front of him it was impossible to think straight.

---

Kate knew there was no way Manning was going to agree to let her leave B.P.R.D. headquarters. Somehow she managed to remember Hellboy's secret way out of the building and soon found herself standing in front of a tall stone house wedged between two other homes.

She looked down at the address on the paper in her hands and compared it again with the numbers on the door. Shoving the paper back into her bag, Kate walked up the front steps and knocked gingerly on the door.

She was worried.

The poor woman had just lost her husband the day before and here Kate was going to ask her to recount the entire ordeal and explain what she knew about the killer.

God, she wished she wasn't so worried.

She heard a noise behind the door. Kate knocked again and this time the door opened, but only a fraction of an inch.

"What do you want?" asked a tired voice from the other side of the door.

Kate cleared her throat. "Mrs. Hardy? I'm Katherine Hayward. I work with the agents that visited your home last night. May I speak with you?"

She purposefully left the 'Dr.' off of her name. The last thing a woman who had just lost her husband would want is a doctor coming to her home to talk with her, whether she knew Kate was not a doctor of psychology or not.

The door opened a little more and she saw the frame of a tiny woman who hardly looked sixty staring back at her. Mrs. Hardy was wearing a powder pink housecoat. She wore no makeup to cover up the dark circles under her eyes and her eyes themselves were extremely bloodshot. Her hand was busy twirling her dull, blonde hair around her index finger. The other hand that was resting on the door was shaking and still adorned what looked like her wedding ring.

Kate spoke gently. "I know this is such a hard time for you, but I wanted to speak with you about…the creature you saw fleeing the scene when you arrived home last night."

Mrs. Hardy's eyes widened and she made an attempt to shut the door but Kate blocked it with her foot.

"Please, Mrs. Hardy. Any information you might be able to give me would be invaluable to the future capture of this murderer."

Something she said must have struck the woman behind the door for the door began to creak open until Kate had enough room to make it inside the house. Mrs. Hardy silently motioned to a sitting room not far from the front door and Kate took a seat and dug out her pencil and paper from her bag. Mrs. Hardy sat across from her looking uncomfortable and tired. Kate felt horrible for having to ask the questions that she was going to, but she knew she did not want anyone else coming to harm by this creature's hand.

But, before she could say anything, Mrs. Hardy spoke first.

"Does this have anything to do with my husband's work at the Bureau?" she asked quietly, her voice quivering as she spoke.

Kate watched her, astonished. "You knew about that?"

The woman across from her nodded sadly. "I knew his involvement there would come back to haunt him someday. I just knew it. With all these monsters and ghosts out there, I knew something like this would happen to him, but I didn't think it would be after he'd retired," she went on.

"How long was your husband working at the Bureau?" Kate asked, pencil in hand.

"Oh, about twenty years. I married him before he was working there and he told me when he was transferred. I wasn't supposed to know, but he told me anyway. We never kept anything from each other."

Kate hadn't expected her to be so compliant and was having trouble writing as fast as she was talking.

"If you never kept anything from each other, did he ever mention that he was in danger in any way? Did he ever mention that this creature might be after him?"

Mrs. Hardy shook her head sadly. "No, never. I'm sure he didn't see this coming."

Crossing her legs, Kate put the pencil up to her chin and tapped.

She pushed her glasses up on her nose a bit with her pencil as she asked, "Did your husband act strangely yesterday before you came home?"

Again, Mrs. Hardy shook her head.

"It was a perfectly normal day. I told him I was going to the bank and asked him if he wanted to come. He told me he was tired and wanted to take a nap and that he would stay home. God, if he'd have come with me he wouldn't have…"

She trailed off and her eyes glazed over.

Although she felt horrible about what she needed to ask next, Kate proceeded.

"Do…do you remember anything about the creature you saw?"

Mrs. Hardy was instantly pulled out of her daze and she glanced wide-eyed at Kate.

"I…hardly saw it, just briefly before it ran away. I followed it and saw that it must have come through the back door. We never lock the back door, and-"

"Back door? It came through the back door?" Kate interrupted.

Mrs. Hardy looked confused. "Yes. Though, it was like it was a shadow…really dark and almost transparent. I remember…its eyes. God, those eyes…I don't think I'll ever forget them. They were gold."

Kate could tell Mrs. Hardy was getting more and more uncomfortable and she held her hand up.

"Thank you Mrs. Hardy. That's all I need."

She picked up her bag and headed for the door, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

When she reached the door, she heard Mrs. Hardy softly say, "Miss Hayward."

Kate paused and waited for her to continue.

"Please…please find it. I don't want anyone else to come to any harm because of it."

Kate smiled sadly. "We'll do the best we can," she promised.

Slowly, she pulled the door shut behind her and stood facing the street. She sighed and began heading back to the B.P.R.D. before she could be missed.

As she walked, she reflected on her interview. 'It must have come through the back door…' she'd said. But, Ystehogol was non-corporeal, wasn't he? Couldn't he have come straight through the wall?

Well, even if she hadn't learned much about Ystehogol's motive for killing Agent Hardy, at least she knew one thing. Ystehogol may not be completely as the book described him.

* * *

**A/N:**So, I hope you enjoyed the little bit in Hellboy's POV. Thank you, reviewers! I appreciated all of the feedback. Please, if you have not left a review yet, take the time to say something, anything. You have no idea how much it just makes my day. I try to reply to everyone who reviews. Even a short review would do. Well, you get the point. Review.


	7. Chapter 7

When it came time to go out with Myers that night, Kate was exhausted.

The day had been long and she'd been researching ever since she arrived back from Mrs. Hardy's home. What she had begun to notice was that each book portrayed Ystehogol differently. While one might inform the reader that Ystehogol was ghost-like with the ability to pass through solid objects, another would say Ystehogol was more akin to a shadow and very much corporeal. Kate found it infuriating and was beginning to wonder if they would ever be able to know enough about this creature to find and capture it. The one fact she found every book to agree on was the color of Ystehogol's eyes. Each book described those golden eyes in vivid detail.

As Kate trudged back to her room after an exhausting afternoon of researching, she took little notice of any other activity going on around her. As if the frustrating research hadn't been enough, the bruise on her head she discovered that morning was feeling worse as the day wore on.

After slipping the card-key in her door, Kate locked the door behind her and decided to make herself look presentable with the little time she had before she and Myers left. Knowing she hadn't bothered with any make-up that day, she made her way to the bathroom and dug around in the back of her drawer for the red lipstick she'd worn upon arriving at the Bureau.

When she realized there wasn't much else she could do to make herself look any better, she grabbed her bag and went to find Myers. It didn't take long as he was heading down the hall in her direction while she locked her bedroom door behind her.

He smiled warmly at her as he approached.

"Ready for that coffee? You look like you need some," he joked upon seeing her weary expression.

Kate smiled in return and hit him lightly on the arm.

"Thanks. Hey, did Manning give us leave for this?"

After two secret expeditions outside of the Bureau without getting caught, she wasn't willing to press her luck.

Myers nodded. "Yup, we're all set. Although, even if he hadn't I'm sure you wouldn't have minded showing me your secret way out of the Bureau."

Gasping, Kate gazed back at him wide-eyed. "How did you-"

"I saw you sneaking out earlier this morning on my way to a conference," he interrupted, then quickly added, "I won't tell, but I'd love to know what you were up to."

Kate watched him. "Aren't you more curious about how I knew how to sneak out," she asked, confused, thinking that would have been the first thing he'd want to know.

Myers shook his head and smiled knowingly.

"I think I've already got an idea."

Blushing with embarrassment, Kate grabbed his hand and attempted to pull him down the hall.

"Aren't we going to get coffee?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

Myers stared at her, confused. "You're going in that?"

Kate looked down at herself and didn't see what he was confused about. She looked like she always did wearing a grey pantsuit and black heels. Then she understood. She hadn't noticed until now that Myers was not wearing his traditional business suit, but rather faded jeans, a plain, black, long-sleeved t-shirt under a ski-jacket, and tennis shoes.

Kate shrugged. "I guess so," she admitted.

Truthfully, she had nothing other than business suits to wear. She couldn't remember the last time she'd worn jeans and a t-shirt.

Smiling, Myers took her hand and the two headed out.

---

The cool night air was beginning to cause Kate to shiver and she chided herself for not owning anything warmer. She stood next to Myers at a small stand on the side of the street as he ordered two large coffees.

When it came time to pay, Kate reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet but Myers covered her hand with his.

She looked up at him and he smiled.

"I've got it," he said warmly, taking her wallet from her and putting it back in her bag.

"But-" she retorted, but he was already paying with his own money.

A few minutes later, coffees in hand, the two continued on down the street and stopped in front of a large library, deciding to rest on the steps in front of it.

Eager to get warm, Kate took a large drink of her coffee and made a disgusted face when she realized it contained no cream or sugar.

Myers had been watching her and chuckled when he saw her reaction.

"Sorry, I should have warned you. Here."

He unloaded the contents of the brown, paper bag he'd been holding and Kate was happy to see about a dozen packets of sugar and a small carton of milk in front of her.

She looked back at him as if to ask if he'd like any, but he held up his hand.

"It's all yours," he explained.

Kate happily emptied all of the sugar into her coffee and then added a fair amount of milk before putting the lid back on and swirling the liquid around a bit to mix it up.

She took a sip and smiled, then glanced at Myers.

"Thank you."

Myers smiled amusedly at her.

"I just remembered how much sugar I saw you use earlier in the kitchen. I don't think I've ever seen someone put so much sugar in their coffee."

Kate took another drink.

"When I was little, I was never allowed to have sugar. My parent's were both type one diabetics, so I wasn't allowed to have sugar because they weren't. Once I was living away from home, it became a habit to add sugar to anything just because I could and I wasn't going to get in trouble for it."

Myers watched her curiously.

"You've never talked about your childhood before."

With a half smile, Kate replied, "Well, I haven't known you for very long."

A moment of silence passed before Kate remembered something.

"By the way, I meant to tell you this is a good look for you. You look a lot less stuffy when you're not in a suit," she joked.

Myers laughed. "Oh? Well, I'm glad I don't look stuffy tonight. Didn't you want to change before we left too?"

Sighing, Kate shook her head.

"I don't think I've worn anything but business suits since high school. I don't have anything else to wear."

Myers waited for her to go on.

Looking up the sky, Kate continued.

"All my life people have always questioned my experience, my capability, my reliability… It was always, 'you're too young' or 'you're too inexperienced'. I've always felt I'm one of those people who is older at heart and it got to be so frustrating that no matter what I did, I could never prove to anyone what I was capable of.

"Once I got to college I was so sick of people not taking me seriously that I started to only wear suits anywhere I went. I don't know, maybe I thought it made me look older… I always thought that the most respected people always wore business suits…"

She looked over at Myers who seemed truly interested in what she was saying.

Laughing, she said, "Sorry. That was probably a lot more explanation than you needed."

Kate locked eyes with him for a moment as he answered, "No, not at all. If it makes you feel any better, Kate, I think after what you did yesterday finding out what killed Agent Hardy, no one would even think to question if you belong here."

Kate scoffed at his remark as she realized someone who would.

"I'm sure Agent Hellboy wouldn't agree with you."

Myers shook his head. "Don't worry about him. Hellboy is just stubborn. He's holding a grudge because you talked back to him your first day on the job. Besides, he actually asked about you earlier today."

Kate perked up. "He did?"

Myers nodded. "Mm-hmm, he asked me where you were, but I didn't know. Now that I think about it, that was right before I saw you sneaking out. Where did you go?"

Kate knew this was coming.

Reluctantly, she said, "I went to go interview Mrs. Hardy."

With a look of surprise, Myers stared at her.

"Jesus, if Manning found out…"

Kate took a drink of her coffee and nodded.

"Yeah but, I knew there had to be something about Agent Hardy we didn't know that might have caused the attack."

"Did you find out anything," asked Myers.

"No. He hadn't done anything that could have triggered Ystehogol to go after him. I can't figure out why this happened. That's what's frustrating."

Myers put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't worry. You'll figure it out."

Kate wanted to believe him, but she was beginning to worry they weren't going to be able to prevent another attack if they didn't find out something soon.

With his hand on her shoulder, Myers must have noticed she was shivering and he unbuttoned his jacket and handed it to her.

Kate pushed it back towards him. "No, you'll freeze."

Not taking no for an answer, Myers draped the jacket over her shoulders and sat back down next to her.

"I'll be fine," he said, simply.

It was then Kate was reminded of the bruise on her head. She winced in pain and rubbed her temples as she felt the searing pain. Myers had been looking away and did not notice.

_Good, _thought Kate, _the last thing I need is for this stupid headache to mess up my time away from the Bureau_.

She gazed out at the people walking along the sidewalk in front of them.

"So, when do I get to hear more about you, John?" she asked, suddenly interested.

Myers chuckled and flashed a boyish smile.

"I can't remember the last time someone called me John. I've missed it, thank you," he said, staring down at his hands.

Smiling, Kate said, "Well, it felt silly calling you Myers when you're calling me Kate."

Again, Kate felt the wave of pain and breathed in sharply. This caught Myers' attention and she felt him grab her shoulders as she doubled over in pain.

"Kate! What's wrong?"

But, she couldn't answer him. Instead, she shook her head.

Once she found her voice again, Kate looked back at him.

"I'm fine. I've had a headache today, that's all. It's probably just stress."

Myers didn't seem convinced. "C'mon. Let's get you back to the Bureau and Abe can check you out and find out what's wrong."

He helped her to stand as she shook her head again.

"No really, I'm okay. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

It seemed as though this time he believed her, but he still held on to her shoulders as they walked.

"Alright, but if you feel like that again, you need to let me know immediately, okay?"

Kate smiled warmly at him and then surprised herself by kissing him lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you," she said softly as they continued on.

Kate didn't want him to think she thought of him romantically, but was so overcome with emotion at the idea that he cared so much for her well-being.

It wasn't long before they arrived back, but to Kate it seemed like hours.

The pain in her head continued to grow every minute, but she didn't want Myers to have to go out of his way for her.

She soon found herself alone and back at her bedroom door.

Myers had insisted that she go straight to bed and get some sleep when she got back.

"Yes, Dr. Myers," she'd joked with a weak laugh.

The pain began to increase so much that Kate had a hard time being able to see straight enough to put the card-key into the slot in her door.

Distantly, she heard footsteps coming closer. She glanced around and was only able to see a large, red blob.

"You okay, kid?" asked a voice.

It was all Kate could do to shake her head before the world around her faded to black.

* * *

**A/N:** I hope you enjoyed chapter seven. Thank you again, reviewers! You make my day! Please, if you haven't left a review, take the time to do so now. Review please. Thank you!


	8. Chapter 8

The bright, fluorescent lighting of the medical bay illuminated Kate as she lay on the metal table.

Regaining her senses, she opened her eyes and was blinded by the light. She attempted to sit up as she shielded her eyes, but someone pushed her back down.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, kid," warned a familiar voice.

As her eyes adjusted, Hellboy's bulky figure came into view above her.

He seemed relieved as he watched her regain her senses. His stone hand was still resting lightly against her shoulder, keeping her in a lying position.

Kate moaned when a wave of pain washed over her.

Hellboy only nodded. "Yeah, that's what I'd be doing too if I had a bruise on my head the size of the one you've got."

Instinctively, Kate raised a hand to the back of her head, but Hellboy grabbed her arm with his other hand.

"Don't touch it. It'll just make it hurt more," he instructed.

Glancing around, Kate noticed she and Hellboy were alone.

"Where's John?" she asked, quietly.

Hellboy withdrew his hand from her shoulder and took a step backwards.

Before he could answer, Myers stepped into the room. Noticing right away she had awakened, he moved towards her and took her hand.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked, softly, stroking the back of her hand with his thumb.

Kate opened her mouth to answer, but coughed instead. Myers left her side for a moment, quickly returning with a cup of water. Kate took it from him gratefully and drank a bit. She handed the cup back to him.

"What happened?"

Myers winced and glanced over his shoulder at Hellboy who crossed his arms and waited for him to continue.

He turned back to Kate. "You passed out. That bruise on your head came with a concussion. Luckily, Hellboy saw you and was able to get you up here for treatment. I got here as soon as I could. Kate, I'm so sorry. I never would have left you on your own if I'd known how serious it was."

Still disoriented, Kate simply nodded.

"How long have I been out?"

"An hour," said Hellboy.

Someone cleared their throat and the three noticed Abe standing at the other end of the room.

"Gentlemen, if you don't mind, I'd like to speak privately with Dr. Hayward about her injury," he requested, waiting patiently for them to leave the room.

Myers leaned over Kate and placed a light kiss on her forehead before leaving the room. Hellboy followed swiftly, looking rather perturbed.

Kate sighed and tried again to sit up. This time, she was able to do so without excruciating pain.

Abe came to her side.

"Kate, what can you tell me about this?" he asked, indicating the wound on her head.

"I…found it when I was washing my hair. I don't know how I got it," she explained, not recalling much before she passed out.

Abe narrowed his eyes in thought and crossed the room to a type of mini-fridge. Opening it, he glanced passed the medication and supplies and found an ice pack. He returned to Kate and placed the pack on her head, guiding her hand up to the ice pack so that she would hold it there herself.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to take a look myself at what happened earlier today. A common side effect of concussions is memory loss. I might be able to see something you can't remember."

Kate nodded wearily, hoping he could figure this out for her.

"Give me your hand, please," he said.

Hesitantly, Kate placed her hand atop his. Her first instinct was to pull away, feeling as though her thoughts were being invaded. Forcing herself to remember Abe was helping, she tried to remain calm as scenes of her day flashed before her eyes. Her date with Myers, pouring over books, visiting Mrs. Hardy, her chat with Hellboy, and her morning routine all flashed before her eyes as if she was simply watching a television show. It was then she remembered the dream she'd had. There before her, her dream played out right up to where she was struck by an invisible blow to the back of her head.

Suddenly, she was back in the medical bay with Abe by her side. He appeared flustered and they both seemed to have the same thing on their minds.

"You don't think…" Kate began, but couldn't find the words to finish.

Abe nodded. "That was no mere dream you experienced, Kate. If I'm not mistaken, it seems Ystehogol is trying to get information from you."

Kate felt her heart pound. She had simply believed to dream to be caused by all the research she'd been doing on Ystehogol.

"Why did he ask for my name in the dream? If he can read minds, why didn't he know?"

Abe thought for a moment before answering. "I'm not sure. It's possible that because the mind loses conscious awareness of its surroundings and is dethatched from conscious thought during sleep that Ystehogol is unable to obtain any information from anyone who is asleep. Although, that does not explain why he hasn't come to you during the daytime if that is the case," he explained.

"But, how did he learn about me enough to contact me?"

Again, Abe paused. Shrugging, he said, "I do not know."

Kate glanced down at her hands. She was beginning to worry that Ystehogol might find a way to contact her when she was conscious. God, what would happen then? What was he looking for?

Looking up at Abe, Kate knew he was quite aware of every thought going through her head. Both remained silent for a moment.

An idea came to Kate. "Abe, I don't know what Ystehogol wants with me or how he knows of me, but couldn't you teach me how to block my thoughts?"

Abe contemplated the idea and Kate watched him.

Finally, he said, "I don't see why not. It would certainly guarantee that any information he might be trying to obtain from you would be safe. It will not be easy, Kate. We will have to work at it every day, but it is possible."

Feeling much more at ease, Kate smiled slightly.

"Thank you," she replied.

Abe patted her on the shoulder comfortingly.

"Not at all. Now, let's see about finding some medication for your headache, hmm?"

---

In the library, Hellboy watched Myers across from him sitting in a worn, leather chair.

The poor sucker looked nervous, and he either knew Hellboy was angry with him, or he was worried about Kate.

Psh, why the hell should he be worried about her? Wasn't he the one who left her alone in the first place even though he knew something was wrong?

Hellboy glared at Myers until the agent finally cracked.

"Okay, Red! I know I shouldn't have left her, alright? It was completely irresponsible of me. She just seemed so adamant that she was okay."

Hellboy scoffed at him. "And you believed her?" he asked.

Myers sighed. "She made it clear she didn't want any help, Red. I couldn't convince her to see Abe. What was I supposed to do?"

Hellboy pulled a cigar from his pocket and lit it.

"Force her. I haven't even known her that long and I know she isn't the type of person who's gonna tell somebody when something's wrong. You should have made her go with you to get checked out," he answered, blowing out a puff of smoke.

Myers was becoming more frustrated by the second.

"Well…why should you care, anyway? You've been rude and disrespectful to her ever since she came here. Why are you so concerned for her well-being now?"

Now it was Hellboy's turn to be frustrated.

He didn't know why he cared so much. Hellboy had come upon her in the hallway as she'd been trying to open her door and had seen how pale and weak she was. Then she'd fainted right before his eyes and he'd caught her before she could hit the floor. Hellboy couldn't remember being so worried about someone in a long time. He had carried her up to the medical bay as fast as he could and laid her down. Hellboy had gotten a cold compress for her and laid it gently across her forehead. He remembered vividly how sick he felt at the sight of her unmoving figure there before him.

Hellboy was so lost in his thoughts, he almost didn't hear Myers ask, "Well?"

Not knowing what to say, Hellboy decided to change the topic. That was when he noticed the red lipstick on Myers' cheek. He hadn't thought Kate ever wore much make-up. It occurred to him then how her bright red lips had been the only source of color in her face when she'd passed out.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing to Myers' left cheek.

Myers lifted a hand to his face, recalling that Kate kissed him earlier, and wiped off the remaining lipstick.

"Nothing," he said, though he knew Hellboy was not going to let this one go.

Hellboy blew another puff of smoke in Myers' direction.

"Oh, yeah? So, that little moment upstairs was 'nothing' too, right?"

Myers knew Hellboy was referring to the kiss he had given her before they left her alone with Abe. He hadn't known why he'd done it, but he kept thinking back to the kiss she'd given him earlier. Myers didn't answer.

Hellboy smirked, satisfied.

He was glad Myers was uncomfortable. Why the hell should he get kissed?

Hellboy put his arms behind his head and propped his feet up on the coffee table separating him from Myers.

Oh, well. Why should he care? It wasn't like he felt anything for her. Myers could have her for all he cared. He wouldn't care if he never had to talk to her again, that irritating, smart-alecky pain in the…

"Red," called Abe, standing on the spiral staircase.

Hellboy looked at him. "What?"

"Kate would like to see you."

Puzzled, Hellboy immediately jumped off the couch and headed up to the medial bay.

---

Feeling much better after Abe had taken care of her, Kate tried to let herself relax.

Their talk of Ystehogol worried her. All she could imagine was meeting the same fate as Agent Hardy. Well, there was no sense in constantly worrying. Abe would work with her and then she'd be able to protect herself. She thought about what Abe had told her as he treated her wound earlier. He'd spoken of Hellboy bringing her up to the medical bay and trying as hard as he could to help her with the little medical knowledge he possessed. Abe said Hellboy waited with her for an hour until she'd awakened.

As she considered what Abe told her, Hellboy appeared at the far end of the room, out of breath.

"You okay?" she asked, wondering why he seemed so exhausted.

Hellboy stood at the foot of the metal table she sat upon, looking embarrassed. He'd practically run up the stairs to check on her after Abe told him she wanted to speak to him.

"Um, yeah, just, uh, wondered what you wanted with me."

The statement did not come out the way Hellboy intended it to and he winced.

Kate gave him a lopsided grin and indicated a chair next to her. Hellboy complied and sat down, seeming uncomfortable. They were silent for a moment.

Not being able to stand the silence, Hellboy spoke first.

"You and Myers have a good time?" he asked.

Kate sighed. "Look, I don't want you to think that there is more going on between me and Myers than there really is. We're just friends, okay? Please don't take what you're seeing and read into it further."

Hellboy quickly realized she thought he was being sarcastic after seeing Myers kiss her earlier.

Desperate to show her he was being genuine, Hellboy said, "I believe you, alright? Just wanted to know how things went."

Kate blushed when she realized Hellboy hadn't meant what she'd thought.

"It was fine," she responded, plainly.

Hellboy nodded and waited for her to tell him what she'd wanted to in the first place.

"Um, I…uh, wanted to thank you for, uh…for helping me. It was stupid of me to try to convince him I was alright and if you hadn't been there…"

She stopped and watched Hellboy.

When he looked confused she explained, "Abe told me everything."

The expression Hellboy cast was akin to the way a child looks getting caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"Uh, you're welcome," he said, awkwardly.

Kate let out an uncontrollable giggle at his reaction and covered her mouth quickly. This caused Hellboy to smirk.

Knowing Kate would want to rest after her ordeal, he lifted himself up off the chair and began heading for the door.

Remembering something, he stopped in the doorway.

"Kate," he said.

She glanced at him and waited for him to continue.

"Uh, you looked…nice today."

Before Kate could reply, he left the room as quickly as possible.

Smiling to herself, Kate noted that he had used her nickname.

She stared up at the ceiling and sighed happily, letting herself lie back down on the table and drift off.

* * *

**A/N:**Thank you again to anyone who has reviewed! I love to hear from you. I was so happy to see some new reviewers after chapter seven was posted, so thank you for that! Please, leave a review if you have not done so yet, especially if you've had this story on your alerts for a while. Well, lets give a big round of applause to my beta, The-Gothly-Emo, for doing such a wonderful job and giving me some much needed encouragement. Special thanks to igbogal, Lightning Angel 64, Peya Luna, Opera-Gypsy, and Kima-Mitsura for always remembering to review, and to anyone else who has been gracious enough to leave some kind words. Thank you! Review!


	9. Chapter 9

Two weeks passed before Kate was completely healed.

Abe insisted her unyielding stubbornness caused the injury to last as long as it did, for she hardly let anyone talk her out of getting work done whenever she could.

He was probably right.

Still, Kate wasn't able to put her work aside. Mrs. Hardy's plea for justice was still fresh in her mind, and she wasn't about to give up on trying to find a way to get to Ystehogol and stop him.

The previous two weeks had gone by rather quickly. Kate found herself becoming more comfortable with the lifestyle of B.P.R.D. employees.

She'd even grown more comfortable around Hellboy. That is, after one final awkward conversation. It had taken place two days after her ordeal.

Kate had been walking down the hallway towards the library after getting herself a cup of coffee from the kitchen when she nearly collided with Hellboy who was coming swiftly around the corner. In surprise, Kate tossed the coffee into the air concurrently dropping the books she was taking back to the library. A shower of hot coffee rained down upon them as a wide variety of profanities from both Kate and Hellboy filled the hall.

After the initial shock of the incident, Hellboy exclaimed, "Damn," while he watched Kate standing there with coffee soaked hair and a coffee stained suit, cheeks red with embarrassment and shock.

At the sight of her tense form standing before him looking as she did, it was all Hellboy could to suppress the laughter he felt building up inside him. It didn't last long, for a moment later Hellboy gave in and laughed fully at her.

Kate glared back at him, but felt the corners of her mouth curving into a slight smile.

"Shut up," was all she could mutter in response to his laughter.

Clearing his throat and attempting to become serious, Hellboy sincerely asked, "You alright, kid?"

Nodding and bending down to pick up her books, Kate spoke under her breath.

"Yeah, I always shower with steaming, hot coffee in the morning."

A slight laugh resounded in the back of Hellboy's throat, but Kate chose to ignore it.

"You get burned?" asked Kate, suddenly realizing Hellboy may have been hurt too.

Hellboy shook his head. "Nah, I don't burn. Demon's perks," he explained, giving her a friendly smile.

"Then why were you so worked up about it?" she asked, knowing those profanities had not only come from her.

Hellboy shrugged. "Hey, this was a clean shirt."

Kate was smiling before she could prevent herself from doing so.

Leaning against a wall, Hellboy watched her wring coffee from her hair.

"So, what else are you planning to do today besides throwing coffee on me?" he inquired, smirking.

Kate rolled her eyes. "Hmm, don't know. I was thinking I'd booby-trap your room or something, but this was much more entertaining."

Hellboy waved off her remark with a smile.

"Feeling any better?"

Sighing, Kate copied him and leaned against the wall, shrugging.

"Eh, I guess. I probably shouldn't be back on the job so quickly, but I feel like if I don't get something done I'll go crazy. I've still got one hell of a headache too," she said, setting down her books to rub her temples.

Remembering something, Kate gazed questioningly at him.

"By the way, why were you coming to my room when I passed out the other day?"

Hellboy was caught off guard and cleared his throat.

Thinking, he crossed his arms. "I, uh…was coming to say I was sorry."

Kate raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain. He looked terribly uncomfortable.

"I kind of…wouldn't get off your back about you and Myers."

Smiling, Kate chuckled and stared at the floor.

"It's okay…"

Hellboy let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding in and nodded.

Kate shuffled her feet and continued to stare at the floor for a moment before finally turning her attention back to Hellboy.

"Hey, I'd better get to the library. I'm supposed to meet with Abe."

Hellboy nodded. "Yeah, well…don't stand too close to him. He's got really bad rotten egg breath."

Kate giggled and picked up her books.

"I'll keep that in mind," she said, already heading back down the hallway to her room for a change of clothes and waving to Hellboy.

Remembering the conversation fondly, Kate found herself smiling.

That had been a little over a week ago. Hellboy had become more comfortable around her since then, and she would even go as far as to say they enjoyed each other's company.

Currently, Kate was situated on the leather couch in the library, waiting for Abe. Their meetings had become more frequent as she was beginning to progress little by little in blocking her thoughts. Ystehogol had not come to her since her dream that night, and Kate was becoming worried that it only meant his next visit would be soon.

When Abe entered the room, he'd already put on his breathing apparatus. Kate had insisted he stay in his tank, as she did not want to inconvenience him, but he only shook his head.

"The glass barrier only inhibits my ability to purge your thoughts, Kate. It's much more effective if I am out there with you," he'd explained.

Kate smiled at him as he approached her, and stood up from the couch.

"Okay, I'm ready," she said.

The words had hardly left her mouth before she was suddenly experiencing a whirlwind of flashbacks.

"It's quite similar to pushing aside a memory. You shut one memory out by concentrating on another," came Abe's voice amidst the flashbacks, reminding her of what he'd taught her previously.

Concentrating, Kate brought forth the memory of her outing with Myers, drinking coffee and enjoying each other's company. Soon, the memory was so strong that it almost ceased the flashbacks. In a moment's hesitation, Kate lost the memory and was overrun with the never-ending parade of flashbacks again. The next moment, she was back in the library, facing Abe who seemed impassive.

"I apologize for surprising you, but you must remember that you will not know when Ystehogol will attempt to penetrate your thoughts. It is the only way I can test you accurately."

Kate held up her hand. "No, no. I understand. I just…need to concentrate more."

Abe nodded. "You're doing quite well, Kate. You must know that. As a human, you are less likely to catch on to this type of exercise of the brain quickly, and you've been doing well."

Kate laughed slightly. "Thanks. I do the best I can, you know, being human and all."

Abe didn't seem to catch on to the joke, and she shook her head at his confused look.

"Never mind," she sighed.

Abe unexpectedly turned to watch the golden doors behind him and soon, Professor Broom came limping into the room, his cane clunking on the floor. Kate had hardly spoken with him since their brief conversation the day she arrived at the Bureau. He always seemed to be busy elsewhere whenever she was working in the library, and rarely saw him.

As he approached them, Broom gave Kate a slight nod and a smile.

"I see Abe has been teaching you how to protect yourself," he noted, removing his hat and setting it on the arm of a chair near him.

Kate remained silent, not knowing if he was finished.

When he did not speak, she inquired, "Professor, why haven't you been around lately?"

She knew it was probably none of her business, but she felt that something was not right. No one had spoken much of Professor Broom in the past weeks, and Kate was beginning to wonder what was wrong.

The older man sighed and leaned on his cane.

"Dr. Hayward, I have been doing quite a bit of research myself these past few weeks, and just as you have, I've been going straight to the sources to get information."

Kate felt her face become warm at the realization Professor Broom knew of her escapade to Agent Hardy's house.

Smiling a bit, Broom said, "We do have security cameras, Dr. Hayward."

Kate shifted her weight, waiting for him to continue with his explanation. Abe too, was looking expectantly at him.

Broom watched them over the rims of his wire glasses.

"Agent Hardy was not the only agent to be killed by unknown causes within the past year."

Kate gasped and Abe blinked alarmingly a couple of times before speaking.

"Professor, how many agents have been killed?"

Broom's face fell. "Ten," he said, solemnly.

Kate shook her head in disbelief. "How did you find out?"

"Since Tom Manning insists on terminating any file on retired agents," he began, "I made a list of previous agents from memory and conducted some investigations. Ten of the seventeen agents I listed have been killed, including Andres Hardy. Each of their deaths has been listed the same way; unknown causes. I have sent letters to the remaining seven agents, enlightening them of this discovery."

Kate was shocked. What could Ystehogol possibly want with these retired agents?

"Why has the Bureau not been notified of these killings?" asked Abe.

"I'm not sure. Someone has been covering their footprints," Broom responded, sounding out of breath.

Professor Broom suddenly seemed to have trouble standing up, even with the help of his cane, and both Kate and Abe placed a hand under each of his elbows. In response, Broom shook his head.

"Please, don't worry about me. I haven't had much rest. If you'll excuse me, it's late and I should get some sleep."

Without another word, he continued his way across the room and through the doors leading to the hall.

It wasn't until later that night after Kate had gone to her room and prepared herself for bed that she felt the full impact of Broom's discovery. Now, they could be certain Ystehogol hadn't attacked on a whim. He had a reason for killing Agent Hardy, just as he probably had reasons to kill every other agent he had gotten to.

Trying to put the thoughts out of her head, Kate removed her glasses and set them on her nightstand, then sank happily into her bed. Within moments, she was asleep.

_The cold, sterile medical bay was still._

_Kate shivered and wrapped her arms around her frame._

_Feeling another presence in the room, she glanced around frantically._

_Kate gasped. Upon the metal table in the center of the room was a body, covered by a white sheet._

_Slowly, she silently made her way towards the body. Once beside it, she carefully began to lift the sheet._

"_I would not do that," whispered a dark voice._

_Kate froze. "Ystehogol?" she whispered back._

_A low chuckle resounded beside her._

"_Well, you certainly know me. Might I have the pleasure of knowing your name?" _

_The voice seemed so pleasant and Kate found herself about to tell him her name._

_Realizing what she was about to do, she clamped a hand over her mouth._

"_Don't be afraid, my dear," cooed Ystehogol, "Please, tell me your name."_

_Angry at his persistence, Kate screamed, "No!"_

_Immediately she felt as though fingernails were digging into her sides. _

"_I killed them, and I can certainly kill you. Tell me your name!" he yelled in her ear._

_Kate turned sharply and was surprised when bright, golden eyes met her own. _

_Closing her eyes tightly, she felt her heart racing._

"_No!" she repeated._

_And then, she no longer felt his presence. _

_Opening her eyes, Kate saw Ystehogol had gone, along with the body on the table._

_Just as she began to relax, his voice came to her once again._

"_You will regret this."_

* * *

**A/N:** Thank you for the lovely reviews! I hope you enjoyed chapter nine. Review!


	10. Chapter 10

The hallways of the B.P.R.D. were dark and silent as Kate rushed to the library, clutching her robe tightly around her.

The sound of her bare feet against the cold, metal floor echoed softly throughout the corridors as she ran. Desperate to reach the library, Kate increased her speed, nearly stumbling over herself. She turned a corner and saw light at the end of the hallway; someone was awake. At last, she reached her destination and quickly surveyed the room.

Abe was not visible in his tank.

Sighing in agitation, Kate sank to her knees in exhaustion. She jumped when a pair of hands took hers and looked up to see Professor Broom watching her with concern.

"Come, sit down," he said, calmly, tugging on her hands gently to lead her to the couch.

Once they were both situated on the couch, Professor Broom waited patiently for her to catch her breath.

After a moment, he asked, "Another dream?"

Nodding slightly, Kate realized Abe must have explained to him her previous dream.

Broom furrowed his brows. "What did he say?"

Kate shivered at the memory of his voice. "He asked me my name, and when I didn't give it to him, he threatened me."

Broom sighed. "He's trying to find you."

Wondering if he had a theory, Kate asked, "Why do you suppose he's contacting me?"

Professor Broom watched her over the top of his glasses, shaking his head.

"I don't know. If I were to guess, I'd say he is sensing that someone is thinking about him frequently. He has been on your mind for a little over two weeks now as you've been researching him, and he might be wondering why. It's possible he's making a connection with you for this reason, trying to find out why you are so interested in him."

His idea struck Kate.

Of course, he must be able to tell that she had been thinking his name almost daily and be curious as to what she must want with him.

Remembering suddenly, Kate untied her robe and pulled up her pajama top slightly to reveal five fingernail marks on each of her sides. She recalled Ystehogol hurting her when she refused to give him her name.

Professor Broom eyed the cuts for a moment, then watched her with the same look of concern he held earlier.

"I'm afraid if he decides to contact you again, he may not be so kind." Lowering her shirt down over her stomach again, Kate gazed into Abe's empty tank.

"He said he'd kill me just like the others. I wonder if he meant the other agents who've died."

Following her gaze, Broom folded his hands in his lap.

"Keep up your work with Abe, Dr. Hayward, and I believe you will be able to prevent any further attacks from Ystehogol."

A silence fell between the two for a moment.

"It's an interesting thing to have your entire life change so suddenly," began Kate, adjusting her glasses.

"I went from being a boring, unsatisfied, lonely library assistant to a non-existent B.P.R.D. employee who is being threatened by a creature she didn't even know existed until a couple of weeks ago."

She chuckled and shook her head in disbelief.

"Well, I guess things aren't boring anymore."

Professor Broom smiled sadly and laid a delicate hand over hers.

"I know it's difficult. The transition is rough. I've frequently found myself in one dangerous situation after another and one learns to endure, Dr. Hayward, and to face threats with a level head and a strong heart. You will endure, and you will succeed."

Kate stared out into the empty tank again, and when she did not speak, Broom continued.

"Please, don't be afraid. We're looking out for you."

For a brief moment, Kate was offended that he believed her to be afraid, but she soon realized he was right. She was afraid, and there was no hiding it. As much as she would have loved to adjust to her new life without qualms, she knew she was insecure about it all.

Kate was pulled from her thoughts when Broom patted her hands lightly.

"Well, off to bed with you," he shooed quietly.

Lifting herself off the couch, Kate began heading back to her room.

There was nothing more to be said, and she knew Broom was aware of that.

The hallway was eerily still, and Kate continued on silently. As she reached her door, she paused. Making a quick decision, she turned around and began down a different hallway. After a brief walk, she found herself at the door to Myers' room. She knew it was early; it was probably around three in the morning. Well, it didn't matter. If she waited to talk to him tomorrow, it was likely she'd be so involved in her work that it wouldn't happen. John had been acting odd for the past couple of weeks. It wasn't as if he'd been avoiding her….well, maybe a little. Kate hadn't spoken with him much since the night in the medical bay. He couldn't possibly be mad, could he? She couldn't think of any reason for him to be. It was probably her fault for waiting so long to confront him about his behavior, but it was now or never.

Kate knocked lightly on his door and waited. She heard a rustling behind the door, and then a small crash. A moment later, the door opened and there stood a very frazzled John, holding his knee in pain. Kate was surprised to see him in his civilian clothes, and understood he must have fallen asleep unexpectedly the night before.

"You alright?" she asked, watching him rub his sore knee.

He chuckled. "Yeah, hit my knee on the corner of my desk trying to get to the door. You woke me out of a dead sleep."

Reaching up and rubbing the back of her neck, Kate offered an embarrassed, "Sorry."

Myers shrugged and regarded her seriously.

"What about you? Are you doing okay? It's got to be around three thirty."

Kate nodded. "Um, yeah…I had a bad dream."

Myers wasn't aware of Ystehogol's visits and she intended to keep it that way.

He seemed confused for a moment and then opened the door wider.

"C'mon in."

Kate allowed him to gently nudge her inside and she quickly surveyed the room. It was exactly like hers; cold, chrome, and unwelcoming.

John offered her a seat in the chair at his desk, and stood opposite her, leaning against his dresser. He was waiting for her to speak, and Kate still wasn't sure how to approach the topic.

Well, she might as well just get it over with.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked.

"What do you mean?" he replied, but the look on his face told her he already knew what she was asking.

"I, uh…are we okay?"

Ugh, this was not going well.

Myers seemed to give in and crossed his arms over his chest.

"We haven't talked in a while, I guess. You know the night you were hurt?"

Kate waited for him to continue anxiously as he changed his position to lean on his other shoulder.

"Well, uh…you were talking to Hellboy and uh…I was coming up the stairs."

Kate suddenly knew why he was avoiding her.

Damn! He'd heard her tell Hellboy that she and Myers were nothing more than friends.

She'd been right in suspecting at the time that he was looking for more than friendship. Now, she felt horrible.

"You were…listening?"

Kate didn't know why she was pressing him further.

He nodded once in response and Kate sighed. "John…"

He shook his head. "No. You don't owe me any explanation. You weren't…interested in me that way and that's not your fault. It's my fault, if anything."

He looked upset, despite his attempt at making her believe otherwise.

Kate didn't know what to say. She was terrible in dealing with situations like this. It wasn't often she was an emotional person, and she wasn't comfortable expressing feelings to others. This was no different. She saw the look of hurt on John's face, and she wanted to make it go away, but she had no idea what to do.

Rising from the chair, Kate made her way to the door.

"I should uh, probably go."

Myers nodded and forced a smile. "Get some sleep…you look terrible."

Kate waved him off and left silently.

Once his door shut behind her, Kate hustled through the hallways back to her room. She made it there quickly and slipped her key into the door. With her door closed behind her, Kate leaned against it.

Stupid! Why was she so incredibly stupid?

There he was practically begging her to say something to ease the tension in the room, and she left! Ugh, she was an awful friend. Myers was wrong; it wasn't his fault at all. It was her fault for being completely inconsiderate of his feelings. Kate knew it was up to her to fix this, she just didn't know how.

---

The next night didn't find Kate in higher spirits.

She'd woken up late, slipped in a puddle of water on her bathroom floor, sat on her glasses so that they were now crooked on her face, and lost the book that contained the most information about Ystehogol. To top it off, she was so exhausted from the previous night's ordeals that she'd hardly gotten any work done all day. Kate knew this was her payback for last night.

Around eight at night, Kate was desperately searching through files in the archive room. Any information she could attain regarding the agents who had been killed named on the list in front of her would be invaluable. They needed a lead on Ystehogol's motives for killing these agents.

Kate practically threw the papers she was holding in to the air when Hellboy's voice came from behind her.

"I've been looking for you," he said, leaning against the wall.

Kate turned on him angrily. "Damn it, Hellboy," she exclaimed, massaging her temples. "You almost gave me a heart attack."

She turned away from him and continued flipping through papers.

Kate expected him to become angry with her, but rather he was silent for a minute before he spoke again.

"Something wrong?"

Kate scoffed. "A million things."

She knew she was being a pain in the ass, but she couldn't stop.

Deciding she was being unfair to him by leaving him in the dark, she admitted, "John and I had a bit of a…falling-out."

Hellboy was shocked. It wasn't like Kate to just start telling him her problems. He only remembered her doing it once before on her first day at the Bureau.

While he was sympathetic to her problem, he couldn't help but be silently overjoyed. It wasn't as if he'd been jealous of their relationship…okay, maybe he had. He was in no way romantically interested in Kate, but he was sick of Myers getting all the attention.

He watched Kate make different piles of paper on the floor around her.

"Uh, you wanna talk about it?" he pressed gently, awkward and not sure what to say.

Thankfully, she shook her head. "No. Not particularly."

Hellboy sighed in relief.

Deciding to change the subject, he asked, "So, what've you got going on there?"

He indicated to the numerous open file cabinets and scattered papers.

Kate didn't look at him when she spoke, instead choosing to continue her work.

"I'm trying to find anything on these agents who've been mysteriously murdered. I'm assuming Professor Broom told you about his discovery."

Hellboy nodded and continued to watch her at work.

"What was it you needed?" Kate asked, a little too harshly.

She hadn't intended to sound annoyed, but she was in the middle of working and she'd had a miserable day. Kate understood Hellboy was trying to make her feel better, but she was too distracted to have a conversation at the moment.

Hellboy seemed to snap out of a daze.

"Huh? Oh, Abe told me to tell you your meeting with him started over an hour ago."

Kate looked up from her work. "Damn! I completely forgot!"

Quickly piling up the loose papers and files surrounding her on the floor, she stood up and began to race out the door.

Before she made it out, Hellboy's voice brought her to a halt.

"Kate…"

She paused and waited for him to continue.

"Uh, this'll work out, okay?"

He wasn't staring directly at her but rather the wall behind her.

Kate knew he was going to great lengths to put her at ease, and she felt the corners of her mouth curve into a small smile.

"Thanks, Hellboy."

A second later she was gone, racing down the hallway.

She hadn't made it far when an all too familiar alarm began blaring.

Kate glanced up at the flashing, red light on the wall. Suddenly the halls were alive with a flurry of activity. Agents rushed around, pushing tall, black boxes filled with weapons or ran by communicating with other agents on their radios. Kate felt helpless amongst the rush to get to the scene of the crime and was relieved when she saw Hellboy heading down the hallway in her direction.

"What's going on?" she asked when he was near enough to hear her.

He was switching on his belt locater and radio as he spoke.

"Don't know. Nobody's told me anything yet."

Kate watched the activity around her and made a hasty decision.

"I'm coming."

Hellboy glanced up from his radio, confused.

"You're supposed to stay here. Besides you-"

Kate shook her head. "That wasn't a question."

Hellboy suddenly understood this was important to her, and nodded.

"Okay. Abe and I will take you with us in the garbage truck. Do you need any books?"

"Yeah, let me stop by the library real quick and I'll meet you by the truck in five minutes."

Hellboy nodded and headed on his way.

---

Later, Kate found herself riding along with Abe and Hellboy in the 'garbage truck'. _Huh, garbage truck_, she thought, amused. The entire inside was a fully equipped crime lab.

"This is not a good idea, Red," sputtered Abe, sitting across from her.

Kate glanced next to her at Hellboy who held up his hands in defense.

"Hey, this was all her idea," he said, pointing an accusatory finger her way.

"She wanted to come. I don't see what the big idea is."

Abe scoffed. "Red, she's liable to hurt herself. Kate isn't used to these escapades as we are."

If Kate hadn't known why Abe was really so concerned, she'd have been offended. Abe was worried about the alarm having to do with Ystehogol; he was worried she'd be in danger if he was found at the scene of the crime.

Kate had also been aware of this, but Ystehogol was precisely the reason she'd wanted to come. She could only find out so much about the creature through books or files, but it was another experience altogether to see him first-hand.

"I'll be alright, Abe," she assured.

Hellboy nudged her with his stone hand, "Yeah, Abe. The kid's gonna be fine, you'll see."

Kate nodded and remained silent throughout the remainder of the trip.

It wasn't long before they reached their destination. The truck came to an abrupt halt and a moment later the doors to the back were opened.

It was Agent Clay who stood there, and he seemed shocked to see a third companion in the back of the truck.

"Dr. Hayward…what-"

"I'm here to observe, Agent Clay, nothing more," she interrupted, letting him help her down from the truck.

Once out of the truck, she was free to observe her surroundings and found they were in front of the very same library she and John had sat outside two weeks ago.

She was suddenly tapped on the shoulder and swirled around to meet Hellboy's gaze.

"Ever used one of these?" he asked, holding a gun in front of her face.

Alarmed, Kate shook her head and pushed the gun back at him.

"No, I haven't and I don't intend to," she answered, determined.

Hellboy rolled his eyes, and dropped the gun into the bag slung over her shoulder.

"If anything happens, aim and pull the trigger." And with that, he walked away, leaving her staring down into her bag with horror at the loaded gun.

"No one is going to make me use that," she whispered to herself, shocked at the idea of shooting a gun, then turned and followed the agents heading towards the library.

At the entrance, Kate caught sight of Myers, helping another agent move a large, black box. For a moment, he saw her and appeared shocked before becoming distracted by another agent who was trying to tell him something.

Kate tried to adjust her glasses, and then remembered they were broken. Sighing, she tried to make her way into the library when an agent stopped her.

"You can't go in there yet. We need to make sure the area is secure."

Frustrated, Kate looked around and spotted Abe coming her way, followed by an agent wheeling a small box.

"Are those the books?" Kate asked, hoping she'd brought what she needed.

Abe nodded as they two approached her.

"Yes, along with a few of my own. I always bring these with me, just in case. You may use any of them you need."

He began to open the box.

"Abe, why won't they let me in?"

Abe stopped and looked incredulously at her.

"Hellboy is always the first one to examine the scene of the crime. We have no idea what's in there, Kate, and it could be extremely dangerous."

He finished unlocking the box of books and Kate was surprised to see about three shelves of old books occupying it.

It was then Hellboy passed them, looking determined.

"Alright, Blue. I'm heading in," he said, not stopping as he spoke.

Kate watched him, awe-struck at his courage. She couldn't believe how un-phased he was by the situation.

Abe nodded at him as he passed. "Good luck, Red."

The group of agents around them became quiet as the watched Hellboy enter the library, armed with the gun usually kept at his belt. Then, Kate supposed, it was time to wait.

It wasn't long before a crackling sound came from Abe's radio.

"Red, are you there?" Abe called into the speaker.

The radio crackled again before Hellboy's voice came.

"Yeah, Blue. You'd better get in here."

Abe cocked his head. "Is it Ystehogol?"

"No, he's long gone by now, but there's something you need to see."

Abe straightened up and began forward.

"Abe,"

Abe turned and regarded Kate.

For a moment, Kate hesitated, and then said, "I'm going with you."

Abe thought about the idea, and then nodded.

A few agents joined the two, including Myers, and Kate helped one agent to wheel the box of books. As they approached the entrance to the library, Kate was beginning to wonder if Abe was right. Maybe her coming along wasn't such a good idea.

* * *

**A/N:** Whew, it's done! Again, for those of you who did not see the update on my profile, I am incredibly sorry for not having this out sooner. Exams, performances, finals...ugh, it's all over now for a whole month. Thank you for being so patient with me. Review!


	11. Chapter 11

The darkness engulfed them as the team of agents and Kate wandered further into the library.

Hellboy had assured them there was no trace of any dangerous entity still inside, but Kate found her eyes rapidly surveying her surroundings for danger. After a minute or so, Abe stopped and Kate nearly collided with him, distracted by a shadow.

"What?" she blurted, blushing when several agents shushed her promptly.

Abe held out his hand, waving it slowly in front of him as if he was searching for something. In one swift movement, Abe's hand was back at his side, and he spun around to face Kate and the other agents.

"Come with me."

He took off with the team following behind, switching on their flashlights as they moved between isles surrounded by tall bookshelves. Their lights soon fell on Hellboy who held up his hand, signaling them to stop. Kate squealed in surprise when an agent accidentally let the black box containing her books bump her in the rear. Again, she was shushed. Hellboy motioned for Abe and another agent to come forward and for a moment. Kate could only see the light coming from the agent's flashlight before they returned. The group seemed solemn.

"Craig, get a hold of Professor Broom and tell him it's important that he get here as soon as possible," said the agent who'd gone with Hellboy.

Agent Craig, standing at Kate's side, nodded and left swiftly.

If she was going to be of any use at all, Kate knew she had to see what Abe and Hellboy had seen. Not knowing what to expect, Kate began forward anyway, determined to see what the problem was.

"No, Kate!" Myers whispered harshly from behind her.

She glanced at him, but pressed on.

Hellboy was distracted talking to Abe and barely noticed Kate brush by him before it was too late. Reaching into her bag, Kate pulled out a flashlight she'd been given earlier and switched it on, pointing it directly in front of her. Sitting at a table covered in books, were two dead men. The one closest to her was sitting back in his chair; head slumped forward, staring lifelessly into his lap. The other sitting next to him was face down on the table.

Kate shrieked and dropped her flashlight instantly, plunging herself into darkness. She turned and found herself in Myers' arms, who'd followed behind her. Too shocked to have any other reaction, Kate clung to him for a moment before stepping back and smoothing out her skirt. Taking deep breaths, she leaned down and picked up her flashlight.

"You shouldn't be in here," she heard Hellboy mumble near her.

Kate glanced at Hellboy who grunted and pushed past her, making his way back to the scene of the crime. She looked at Myers who gave her a sad smile before joining Hellboy to observe the scene. A gentle hand rested on her shoulder and Kate faced Abe.

"You have the same right as any of us to be here. Hellboy is just…focused on his work," he reassured, trying to apologize for Hellboy's behavior.

Kate nodded, trying to calm herself. She was beginning to feel nauseated and lightheaded and steadied herself on a nearby shelf.

Half an hour later, Professor Broom arrived with Manning just as pictures of the crime scene were being taken. They passed Kate who hadn't moved and was feeling weaker than before. Professor Broom gave her a slight smile, not surprised at all to see her there, before going to talk with Hellboy.

"What do you think you're doing here?" said Manning, surprised and furious to see Kate on the field.

Kate, in no mood to talk for fear of being sick, merely shook her head.

Manning wasn't through with her.

"I thought you were specifically told to stay at the Bureau. You aren't an agent. Someone could have gotten hurt because of you, do you understand?"

He was yelling and a few heads began turning in their direction.

Finding her voice, Kate retorted, "What good is it for me to just sit around back at the Bureau never getting to see anything? If I am going to be able to research properly, I need to see what exactly is going on so I know what to look for. Do _you_ understand?"

Manning opened his mouth to reply, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

Myers indicated a group of agents with a nod. "Clay needs to talk to you."

Manning nodded once and scowled at Kate.

"We are not through," he warned, leaving to find Clay.

Sighing, Kate slumped back against the bookshelf.

"You really didn't have to," she breathed, still dizzy.

Myers shrugged. "I didn't think you deserved that. Manning's just mad that you made it here without him knowing."

Reaching into her bag, Kate found a packet of tissues and took one, dabbing the sweat away from her brow. She was beginning to feel claustrophobic, surrounded by the bookshelves and groups of agents.

_Huh, funny for a library assistant to be afraid in a library_, she mused.

Myers was beginning to look concerned. "You doing okay?"

Kate shook her head. "No. Not really."

The nausea wasn't passing, but it wasn't getting worse. At least she had that going for her.

Myers moved next to her and leaned against the shelf.

"I remember my first time. I don't think I hardly ate for three days. It's funny how much it affects you, even if you didn't know them."

Kate slid her back down along the shelf until she was sitting on the floor. Myers did the same.

"I just need to sit down for a while," said Kate.

"Do you want me to get you out of here?" whispered Myers, not wanting to embarrass her.

He knew she was trying her best to downplay her reaction to the crime scene, and he felt for her. It wasn't easy seeing someone dead for the first time, especially around a group of F.B.I. agents who were used to the sight.

"No. I've got to take a look at the scene," Kate explained.

She needed to find out why those men were important to Ystehogol and why he killed them.

Myers watched her take a few deep breaths. He wished he could help, but there was really nothing comforting to say.

"I won't lie to you; you'll never forget what you saw. In fact, you'll probably remember it daily for a while, but I will promise you one thing; you'll get better at dealing with it."

Knowing he wasn't just being cynical, Kate nodded.

"Thanks," she said, but she wasn't being sarcastic at all.

She appreciated that he was being truthful with her, and not sugarcoating the situation.

"Hey, Boy Scout! Get your ass over here and give us a hand," yelled Hellboy from down the aisle.

Myers stood up and left his hand on her head briefly before going to meet Hellboy.

A while later, some of the commotion had died down, as the bodies had been bagged and taken away, and the scene of the crime had been examined. Kate figured it was the best time for her to examine the scene herself and left her spot on the floor making her way toward the table where the men had been discovered earlier. When she arrived at the table, she surveyed the scene more closely. Numbered cards had been placed around the chairs where each body had been, and along the table, which was still covered in books.

No one seemed to be around, but as Kate reached for a book, someone called out, "Dr. Hayward!"

Kate spun around and saw Agent Stein, an agent she'd been previously introduced to by Agent Clay.

"No one is allowed to touch anything until Dr. Manning has given permission," he explained, rubbing a hand through his hair nervously.

Kate sighed, exasperated. "Look, couldn't I just take a look quickly? I'll put everything back where I found it, I promise. If you've got some surgical gloves on you, I'll use those. Please?"

Stein seemed torn. "But, Dr. Manning…"

"Dr. Manning and I aren't on the best of terms right now. Please, I really need to check this out so I know what to research," she pleaded.

Sighing nervously, Agent Stein nodded. "Alright, you've got five minutes. I'll cover you."

Kate smiled as he pulled a pair of gloves from his pocket and tossed them to her. He began to walk away as she put the gloves on, but he stopped suddenly.

"I'm denying everything if you get caught, okay?" he said with a half smile.

Kate chuckled weakly, turning to examine the table. Picking up the book closest to her, Kate read the title aloud to herself.

"_Monsters: An Investigative Guide to Magical Beings_ by John Michael Greer."

Setting the book where she'd found it, she picked up another.

"_A Field Guide to Demons, Fairies, Fallen Angels and other Subversive Spirits _by Carol K. Mack and Dinah Mack."

She flipped through the pages for a moment before putting it down and glancing at the title of the one beside it.

"_Out of the Dark: The Complete Guide to Beings from Beyond_by Brad Steiger," she read, her voice hardly above a whisper.

Clearly there was a common theme.

While Kate would need to wait for the autopsy results, she was fairly certain who killed those men. Why he'd done it was completely beyond her and until she found out who the men were, she could only speculate. They had obviously been aware of Ystehogol and may have even known he was targeting them, but Kate needed to look into it further.

Kate glanced around the chairs where the men had been sitting when they died. Not one drop of blood was visible anywhere. Picking up the last book she'd looked at, she opened the cover.

A sudden crash caused her head to snap up and she stared out beyond the table to the isle in front of her. A book had fallen to the ground. Glancing around, she noticed that no one was there to have done it. As she began to step toward the isle, a voice brought her to a halt.

"Man, I've sure rubbed off on you." Kate watched Hellboy come her way, placing his gun back at his belt.

"I'll bet Manning didn't give you permission to do that," he said, indicating the book in her hand.

Slamming the book shut, Kate placed it back on the table.

"Well, someone's got to start trying to figure things out around here," she said, defiantly.

Kate began to feel ill again, and braced herself on the table.

Hellboy placed his hands on his hips. "Who the hell let you come in here earlier anyway? You should have waited until we were sure nothing was here."

Kate watched him, confused. "But, you said there wasn't anything..."

"Yeah, well, I've been wrong before," admitted Hellboy, shrugging.

Being so close to the place the men had died was causing a fresh wave of nausea for Kate.

"Earlier when Abe asked you if Ystehogol was here, you said he was long gone but, I thought you said you didn't believe in Ystehogol?"

It was best to change the subject as Kate was growing tired of being yelled at.

Hellboy sighed. "I still don't. I was a little distracted at the time," he explained.

Kate didn't buy it. With her findings through her research and Professor Broom's discovery, she was beginning to think Hellboy was starting to believe.

Letting it go, Kate nodded.

"Did you ever check out that part of the library?" asked Kate, pointing at the spot where she'd seen the book drop.

Hellboy nodded. "Yep, checked out the whole place."

Shivering slightly, Kate said, "Would you check over there again? A book fell when I was standing here and there was no one there to have caused it. It's giving me the creeps."

She felt like a little kid again, asking her dad to check her closet for monsters.

Hellboy rolled his eyes, but pulled out his gun and headed off to look. Once he disappeared, Kate walked to where the book had fallen. The book was open, but face down. She looked down at the cover.

"_The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe_," she read, softly. Kate picked it up and looked at the open page. The title of the page read '_Spirits of the Dead_' in large, bold letters and beneath it was a poem.

Thy soul shall find itself alone  
'Mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone --  
Not one, of all the crowd, to pry  
Into thine hour of secrecy:  
Be silent in that solitude  
Which is not loneliness -- for then  
The spirits of the dead who stood  
In life before thee are again  
In death around thee -- and their will  
Shall then overshadow thee: be still.

For the night -- tho' clear -- shall frown --  
And the stars shall look not down,  
From their high thrones in the Heaven,  
With light like Hope to mortals given --  
But their red orbs, without beam,  
To thy weariness shall seem  
As a burning and a fever  
Which would cling to thee for ever :

Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish --  
Now are visions ne'er to vanish --  
From thy spirit shall they pass  
No more -- like dew-drop from the grass:

The breeze -- the breath of God -- is still --  
And the mist upon the hill  
Shadowy -- shadowy -- yet unbroken,  
Is a symbol and a token --  
How it hangs upon the trees,  
A mystery of mysteries! –

Closing the book slowly, Kate glanced up to see Hellboy returning. He stopped when he reached her and put his gun back at his belt.

"Sorry, kid. There's nothing there."

Kate clutched the book tightly and nodded.

"Thanks anyway," she whispered.

Patting her roughly on her shoulder with his stone hand, Hellboy made his way past her and headed back to a group of agents who were packing up to return to the Bureau. Kate took one last look around before walking back to the large, black box containing her books and placed the book she held inside. Closing up the box, she slowly began to wheel it to the front of the library, glancing around the darkened isles as she did. At the library entrance, another agent offered to pack up the box to be taken back to the B.P.R.D., and Kate agreed. Leaving the library, she sat on the steps in front, resting her head in her hands. She knew she had a lot to think about, and a lot of work coming her way. Ystehogol had killed again, as far as she was concerned, and she needed to stop him.

* * *

**A/N: **Well, the updates are slow, but they keep coming. A round of applause for The-Gothly-Emo, my beta, who fixes my mistakes and gives me ideas and encouragement. Thank you! To all of my reviewers, I thank you for making my day, and giving me the feedback I need to know when I'm doing something right/wrong. You are all wonderful. To those of you who have _Need_ on your alerts and have not reviewed...I know who you are. Please, take the time to leave a review so I know how the story is being received. I hope you enjoyed chapter eleven, now go review! :D


	12. Chapter 12

"…reckless, irresponsible thing to do! Are you listening to me?"

Kate turned her head abruptly in Manning's direction from where she'd been watching agents pass by outside the conference room.

She nodded and Manning grunted.

"I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. You're not a trained agent and your carelessness could have caused another agent to get seriously hurt."

Kate let out a slow breath.

"The library was clear," she explained, slowly and calmly.

Manning slammed a fist on the long metal table Kate sat at.

"That's not the point," he yelled, then pinched the bridge of his nose. "The fact is, you're getting too involved in this case and it's endangering the other agents."

He paused, watching her with a stony look.

"Therefore, I'm pulling you from this whole…Ystehogol business."

Kate pushed herself up from her chair angrily.

"What?"

Her voice had risen considerably and she watched him incredulously.

Manning gave a curt nod. "I'm restricting you from researching this case any further."

"The reason I'm here is to help Abe with extra research. He's got too much going on to be able to-"

"You're dismissed," Manning interrupted, beginning to light a cigar he'd pulled from his jacket pocket.

Kate couldn't believe it. All she'd been trying to do was get some more information to help her with the research. She couldn't possibly learn everything she needed to by staying at the Bureau every time Ystehogol killed.

Remaining for a moment to stare disbelievingly at Manning, Kate huffed and stormed out of the conference room. She continued to walk briskly through corridors, not knowing where she was going. She was too angry to care. Who the hell was he to tell her she couldn't work on this case? He didn't know how serious this was becoming. He had no idea of the dreams Kate had had. If she wasn't allowed to research, she'd never be able to find Ystehogol's next target and stop him before he struck.

Agents were watching her with puzzled expressions as she rushed past them. Stopping suddenly, Kate turned and headed in the direction of the library, hoping to catch Professor Broom. When she reached the library, she heard raised voices from inside. She pushed open the golden doors and saw Hellboy staring angrily at Broom who was sitting behind his desk. As she approached, their attention turned to her and she suddenly found herself under the livid gaze of Hellboy.

"Well, hope you're happy," he snarled.

Kate was slightly out of breath, and leaned against a leather chair near by, returning his gaze with her own baffled expression.

"Excuse me?" she breathed, not ready for more yelling.

Hellboy scoffed. "I'm grounded. Damn, if I just hadn't listened to you-"

"Wait, you're telling me this is my fault?"

Hellboy looked to his father for help.

"Hellboy knew better than to let you go with him," explained Broom, seeming exasperated.

Hellboy turned on Kate again and brushed past her on his way out, muttering a sarcastic, "Thanks." When he'd gone from the room, Kate looked at Broom.

"Professor, it wasn't his fault. I asked him to take me with him."

Professor Broom held up his hand. "While that may be, he knows better."

"But, it was my fault for putting the other agents in danger."

Broom narrowed his eyes and tilted his head to watch her over the rims of his glasses.

"The other agents? Dr. Hayward, I grounded Hellboy because he knew better than to put _you_ in danger. Hellboy knows you aren't trained to be out on the field, and he should have exercised better judgment."

Confused, Kate came forward and leaned on the desk.

"You mean you were worried about me? Not the others?"

Broom nodded. "They can take care of themselves, Dr. Hayward. They have been trained."

While Kate was appreciative of the fact he was worried for her well-being, she was still upset with Manning, and her tone was harsher than she meant for it to be when she spoke.

"I'm surprised anyone around here cares about what the hell happens to me."

Broom gave her a half smile and Kate shook her head, upset with herself for taking out her anger on Professor Broom.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Broom remained silent, sensing she had something else to tell him.

Kate sat across from him in a chair.

"Manning took me off the case."

Professor Broom sighed and leaned back in his chair.

"Tom Manning has the right to remove agents from cases as he sees fit."

Kate leaned back as well, defeated.

"Then there's nothing you can do?"

Broom shook his head sadly.

Kate blew out a puff of air, upset but not knowing what else to do. Looking at Broom, she became serious.

"Professor, the books those men were studying were all on the same subject: paranormal beings. I'm certain they knew about Ystehogol and knew he was coming for them. They must have been trying to figure out some way to stop him from killing them."

Broom leaned on his desk. "I believe you're right. Those men were Martin Aarden and Anthony MacCarrick, and both were previous B.P.R.D. agents."

Not surprised, Kate nodded. "Ystehogol must have some reason for these killings. It can't be a coincidence that these former agents are being murdered. I need to find out…"

Kate stopped when she remembered she was forbidden from researching further into the case.

Broom, sensing her distress, said, "Don't worry, Dr. Hayward. We'll take the information you've compiled and consider it in solving this case."

Kate nodded wearily and watched Broom rise from his chair.

"Well, it's been a busy day, and it's getting quite late. I believe I'll get some rest."

Kate stood from her chair as he ascended the spiral staircase. She had just turned to leave the library when he called her.

"Dr. Hayward, please be sure to inform me of any other information you come across," he said, then with a wink, continued on up the stairs.

Kate stood glued to the floor and put her hands on her hips. Broom had just given her permission to ignore Manning's orders. Shaking her head, she left out the golden doors and walked down the corridor, still not believing what she'd just heard. She began down the hallway leading to her room when she quickly changed her mind and left down a different hallway. When she came across the massive metal door, she wasn't alone. Agent Clay was standing in front of Hellboy's room, watching her come towards him. He shook his head when she neared him.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Hayward, but no one can see him right now."

Kate crossed her arms in front of her.

"Please, Clay? This is important."

Again, he shook his head. "I'm sorry. I really can't let you in."

Kate sighed and began to leave when he looked down at his watch.

"Well, time to get Red some dinner."

He pulled out the key to the metal door from his pocket and dropped it.

"Whoops. Well, I guess it'll be safe there while I'm gone."

Clay shrugged and began walking down the hallway, giving her a knowing glance before he turned the corner.

Smiling, Kate picked up the rectangular key and put it into the hole on the door. The door made a few loud noises as it opened, and Kate looked around to see if anyone was around before she slipped inside. Immediately, she heard crackling noises as she stepped and glanced down to find candy wrappers beneath her feet. Rolling her eyes, she surveyed the room, but saw no sign of Hellboy. A soft 'mew' caught her attention, and she knelt down to pet an orange tabby who had rubbed against her leg. The cat began purring and Kate picked it up, cradling it in her arms.

She cuddled it a moment before she heard Hellboy say, "What do you want?"

Kate looked up from the cat and saw an irritated Hellboy with his arms crossed. She let the cat down, not taking her eyes off of Hellboy.

"It was my fault you were grounded-"

"Yeah," he interrupted.

Kate rolled her eyes and forced herself to continue. "I just wanted to-"

"Apologize?"

Clenching her fists, Kate looked away from his burning stare. "Yes."

A minute or so passed as Kate waited for him to respond before Hellboy chuckled derisively.

"What? You waiting for me to forgive you? What's it matter to you?"

Kate placed her hands on her hips.

"I'm trying not to screw up two friendships in one day," she explained through clenched teeth, remembering that she and Myers still weren't on the best of terms.

She'd hoped he would have at least been respectful of her apology.

"Who the hell ever said we were friends?" Hellboy asked in disbelief.

Kate was shocked. What caused the sudden change? Earlier he'd been comforting her after her ordeal with Myers. Now he was claiming they'd never been friends?

"I just assumed that-"

"What? That just 'cause I was nice to you meant we were friends? Sorry, kid. No such luck. Don't you remember? I said that as long as we played nice, we'd get along okay."

Kate was becoming angrier by the second. He was insinuating she had done this to sabotage him.

"You think I meant for this to happen? Well, how the hell was I supposed to know you'd get grounded? This is a bit of an overreaction to having to be stuck in your room for a week," she argued, feeling her face turn red.

This was ridiculous! What was this really about?

Hellboy waved her off.

Scowling, Kate said, "Fine, whatever. You don't want to try and be friends? Well, that's fine with me."

She couldn't take it anymore. He was upset about something else, she knew it. Whatever it was, she'd just have to wait for him to tell her what really was bothering him. He knew there was no way she'd been able to know he would get grounded for letting her come on the field with him. Even when he was grounded before, he wasn't this upset about it; he'd even snuck out! Clearly, something else was wrong.

Kate turned abruptly and began to leave when her heel got caught in a crack where the door should have been. She feel forward and landed painfully on her side, looking back to see the heel of her shoe still stuck in the crack.

Hellboy, having watched the entire ordeal, let out a booming laugh. Kate quickly picked herself up off the floor and pulled off her shoes. She leaned down and pulled the heel from the crack in the floor and threw it at Hellboy, hitting him square in the chest. He ignored it and continued to laugh. Groaning irritably, Kate carried her shoes and left as fast as she could, heading back to her room and wondering what else could possibly happen to her to make her day even worse than it already was.

Hellboy watched her leave as his laugher died down. He crossed the room and sat in his favorite chair, facing his televisions. He hadn't meant for things to go that far. At first, he'd been simply upset with himself. Father had been right; it was his own fault for getting himself grounded. He was simply unwilling to admit it, and it was so easy to take it out on Kate.

What had really thrown him off guard was when she'd called them friends. Friends? He hadn't considered it until then, but he supposed they were friends. Somehow, that admission coming from her had just been overwhelming, and he'd gotten carried away. Hellboy sighed. Well, they _used_ to be friends. The things he'd said to Kate were incredibly hurtful. Hellboy propped his elbow on the arm of the chair and rested his chin in his hand, replaying their argument in his head. What had caused him to say those things? All she'd done was try to apologize. Hellboy hated to admit it, but he knew he was in the wrong. Sighing again, he stared blankly into a blank television screen. He knew he'd have to fix this somehow, but he had no idea how to do it. Rolling his eyes, he grabbed a beer can on the table next to him, only to find it empty. He grumbled and crushed the can, tossing it aside. Damn, why did women have to be so sensitive?

---

Kate had just finished putting on her pajamas when there was a knock at her door. She grabbed her robe from her closet and quickly tied it before opening the door. Myers smiled at her from the hallway.

"You feeling okay?"

Now that he mentioned it, Kate was not feeling okay. The nausea she'd felt from seeing the dead agents had not let up since then, and she was fighting it back even more now that he brought it up.

Kate nodded anyway. Stepping aside, she motioned for him to come in. She took a seat on her bed and he sat beside her.

"Clay said he heard you and Hellboy having a fight."

Kate huffed. "Great," she muttered, sarcastically.

If he'd already told Myers, who knew how many other agents already knew about their scrap.

Myers leaned his elbows on his knees.

"Hellboy's just being Hellboy, you know," he offered, watching her intently.

Kate rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that seems to be the excuse for everything he does."

Myers shrugged. "He talks before he thinks sometimes. I'm sure he'll come around."

Reaching behind her, Kate grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her chest.

"I doubt he's interested in apologizing to me."

Kate realized suddenly she hadn't apologized to Myers for the night before, and knew this was her chance.

"John, I uh, wanted to say I was sorry."

He nodded and smiled charmingly at her.

"No worries. At least I can say I've never been turned down by a woman as pretty as you."

Kate smiled and elbowed him lightly.

"Ha! If only that were true," she joked.

John's face became serious then, and he leaned in closely and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

Unfortunately, it was at that moment Kate realized she couldn't hold back the nausea she'd been feeling anymore. When he pulled back, Kate hurriedly jumped off the bed and rushed to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

As she vomited into the toilet, Myers leaned on the other side of the door, smiling knowingly.

"You'll get through this, I promise," he called through the door, comfortingly.

"Tomorrow will be better."

Kate believed him.

* * *

**A/N: **Wow, I think Hellboy was a little harsh, don't you? So, I'm incredibly sorry for the long wait. Life got a little crazy. I hope this chapter made up for the wait, but if it didn't you have the right to complain and I'll understand. Thank you for all your lovely reviews and support. I love to hear from you. Please take the time to leave a review. Thanks!


	13. Chapter 13

The crackling of the roaring fire in the fireplace provided the only disturbance to the silence that filled the library. Kate shifted positions to lay flat on her stomach on the leather couch. She propped her elbows on a pillow and continued to read from the book she held a few inches from her face. Sighing, she flipped the page, enraptured with the story before her. It had been a long time since she'd read any Poe, and she'd forgotten how easily he could draw a reader into his tales. Kate kicked her feet behind her gently while humming a familiar tune, still engrossed in the story when there was a sudden noise, as if someone had cleared their throat. Kate snapped the book closed and quickly moved herself into a seated position on the couch, racing to put her heels back on and smooth out the wrinkles from her gray trousers. She shoved the book under the cushion of the couch and sat atop it. When she was satisfied she looked presentable, she glanced up and found Abe floating effortlessly in the tank before her, his head to one side and his arms crossed over his chest. He shook his head and chuckled.

"I truly didn't mean to startle you."

Kate brushed strand of hair behind her ear which had come loose from her bun.

"No, it's all right. I was just uh…"

"It looks to me as if you were reading the book you stole from the library," he said with a tone that indicated he might have been smirking if his features had allowed him to do so.

Kate let her arms fall limp at her sides for a moment, defeated, before rising to retrieve the book from under the cushion.

"It's been a long time since I've read any Poe," she mused, more to herself than to the creature in the tank before her.

She traced the outline of the cover with her fingertips for a moment, remembering how the book had come to her.

Abe seemed to pick up on her thoughts instantly.

"You're worried it was a warning."

When Kate didn't respond for a moment, he went on.

"The poem you read back at the library. You're worried it was a warning from Ystehogol."

Kate set the book next to her on the couch and watched it, as if she thought it might get up and run away.

"I think he was still in the library when we were there, Abe. Why else would the book have fallen right when I was there to see it? Is it possible that…he might be powerful enough to hide himself from someone with powers like yours? It may have been why you didn't detect him there."

Abe momentarily let himself float absently while in thought. He nodded slightly.

"I suppose."

He seemed reluctant to think he could have not been able to sense Ystehogol.

Kate hadn't meant to offend him, but she was starting to strongly believe not everything was known about Ystehogol.

"I only meant that the poem was clearly foreshadowing something," she offered.

Then something struck her.

"Abe, I don't think he made the connection between me and the fact that I'm the one he's been coming to in my sleep."

Surprised at the sudden revelation, she glanced up at Abe.

"That's quite possible. If he cannot read your mind in your dreams, it's also possible he cannot get a clear image of your appearance either," he concluded, making small circles with his webbed feet in the water.

Kate's mind was racing, and she was overwhelmed with a sense of frustration.

With a huff, Kate buried her face in the pillow next to her on the couch.

"Mmf, hrrm hmmf mmh," was her muffled response.

"I understand your frustration, Kate. Manning was out of line, and his decision was much too harsh," Abe said, not needing to hear Kate clearly to know what she had said.

Kate sat up and propped her elbows on her knees, resting her chin on her palms.

"I feel like there's so much more to find out. It's completely unfair."

The two were silent for a while, listening to the popping of the dying fire. Kate stared meaningfully into the fire. She could see Mrs. Hardy's face clearly in her mind when the widow had asked Kate to find and stop Ystehogol. The image was soon replaced with the lifeless bodies of the former agents in the library.

There was a soft tap and Kate craned her neck to watch the tank as Abe held his hand against the glass. His gaze was sympathetic and she knew he was seeing what she was remembering.

"I know this is important to you," he began softly, "but, for the time being, let the rest of us worry about this. In the meantime, we'll work on your exercises in case Ystehogol attempts to contact you again."

Kate let herself sink a little more into the couch.

"He won't come back. I'm not researching him anymore, remember? That's why he was able to get to me."

Abe shook his head. "There is too much that is unknown about Ystehogol. We do not know what he might know about you and he may-well be able to contact you again."

He had a point, but Kate was still reluctant to continue with their lessons. If Manning found out she was doing anything Ystehogol related, she feared that would be the end of her work at the Bureau.

Reluctantly, Kate nodded. "All right."

Abe suddenly turned his attention to the golden doors and a moment later Manning came strutting into the library, his arms full of manila folders and papers. Kate had a sinking feeling which was confirmed when Manning reached where she was sitting and dropped the massive pile of papers in her lap. She grunted when the pile hit her lap; it was just as heavy as it looked.

"I need these filed by tomorrow morning," he demanded, placing his hands on his hips and glaring down at her.

"It's almost ten o'clock at night," said Kate, gawking at him.

Manning shrugged. "You've got all night."

Restraining herself from wringing his neck, Kate closed her eyes for a long moment before she spoke.

"I'm a research assistant, not a secretary. If you need someone to do this kind of work, then hire somebody else, because it's not part of my job," she argued calmly through clenched teeth.

She could see the heat rising to Manning's cheeks and the large vein in his forehead beginning to pulse.

"Your job is to do whatever I tell you to do, and if you ever have the urge to refuse an order I've given you again, you might find yourself back at the library cataloging books. Am I clear?"

Seething, she was about to retort when Abe's voice rang clearly in her head.

"_Do not say anything you might regret, Kate. We need you here._"

Kate glanced at him quickly before turning her attention to Manning.

"Yes, sir."

With a satisfied smirk, Manning nodded and headed back the way he had come.

"Very good," he called cockily over his shoulder.

The moment he let the doors shut behind him, Kate groaned.

"Can you believe this? I was hired on as a research assistant and here I am filing papers when I should be doing more important things. And all of this is just because he thinks I made him look bad by sneaking out behind his back."

Sighing, she shoved the pile of papers off of her lap and on to the cushion next to her.

Abe watched her.

"I know this is difficult, but you cannot do or say anything now that may jeopardize your job. You're needed here, Kate, whether you believe it or not."

With a half smile, Kate let herself sink comfortably back into the couch.

"Thank you," she whispered.

It was the first time in a while she'd felt useful, and she was glad to know someone cared about her staying. Abe picked up on her gratitude and gently touched the glass paneling separating them.

Kate smiled, contented with the idea she had a true friend.

---

"Damn it, Manning," Kate cursed under her breath.

Not only was there a terrible amount of papers which had to be filed, but Manning had given her papers which were almost impossible to file. Half of the information seemed not to fit in any particular area of the archive room, and Kate was finding she had to constantly make new folders and reorganize the outdated folders already present. Frustrated, she slammed down a large stack of papers on the floor next to her and brushed the same annoying strand of loose hair out of her eyes. She knew she looked terrible; her eyes were bloodshot, her hair was coming loose from her usually perfect bun, her glasses were sitting crookedly on the end of her nose, and her suit was wrinkled from her time spent lounging around the library reading. Holding her head in frustration, she finally let herself fall backwards and lied still on the cold, metal floor, gazing up at the ceiling.

Manning was right up there with Hellboy on her list of annoyances. Ugh, she didn't even want to bother thinking about Hellboy. It had been a couple of days since their yelling match during which time she'd spent reading and surreptitiously researching more on Ystehogol and his previous attacks. John had said Hellboy hadn't quite been himself since then, and Kate was glad. She needed to know Hellboy might feel sorry for the way he had treated her. Normally, she would have found something to blame herself for, but in this case, she knew it was all on Hellboy, and she hoped he knew it too. It would have to be up to him to apologize to her for what he'd said.

Kate suddenly stopped counting ceiling tiles and sat upright. Why was it she wanted his apology so much? It certainly wasn't as if they'd developed a close relationship or anything. On the contrary, they tolerated each other more than anything. So, why had she been finding herself waiting for him to show up at her bedroom door for the past two days, ready to apologize? Whether she cared to admit it or not, Kate knew, in a way, they had developed a strange sort of friendship over the time she had been at the Bureau. She even occasionally enjoyed their time together, but only occasionally. Their clashing, stubborn personalities tended to get in the way of any type of strong friendship, but Kate almost wanted him to apologize to her and for things to be alright again between them. She didn't know why, but she simply just did.

Glancing around the room at the piles of papers surrounding her, she groaned loudly and resumed her work once more. It wasn't long before she found herself drifting off. She did not know the time, but she guessed it was late, and her work was nowhere near finished. Agitated and knowing she'd be up for hours, Kate pushed herself up from the floor and headed sleepily to the door, planning to head to the kitchen for some coffee.

The hallways were empty, and she groggily pressed on until she found herself at the doorway of a dark kitchen. For a moment she groped for the light switch, finally lighting the room and making her way to the coffee maker. After grabbing a mug, Kate noticed the coffee maker was filled with fresh coffee. She cocked her head and stared down at a hastily scribbled note sitting on the counter.

_Thought you might need this. Abe told me you'd be working late. Good luck. – John_

Shaking her head with a smile, Kate poured the coffee into her mug, added her customary excessive amounts of cream and sugar, which had also been set out for her, and shut the light off in the kitchen, making her way back to the archive room.

She hadn't made it far before she felt a sharp pain in her chest. Stopping dead in her tracks, Kate placed her hand over her heart, wondering what could have possibly brought about the pain. She shook it off and continued on, only to stop a few moments later with the same pain. Without warning, the pain began to worsen, spreading throughout her body. The mug grasped in her hand fell and shattered as it hit the floor, a puddle of coffee mixed with the remnants of porcelain. Kate hardly felt her knees buckle and connected harshly with the floor a second later. Gasping in excruciating pain, Kate reached for her waist, attempting to find the belt locater Abe had given her a few days ago. He'd told her to keep it on her at all times in case anything happened. Finally feeling the button, Kate pressed it and waited. It felt like decades before she heard pounding footsteps on the floor from somewhere nearby.

Hellboy rounded the corner, heart racing, and with a start found Kate lying helplessly on the floor. She looked as though she was having a seizure, convulsing violently and pale as could be. Hesitating only for a moment, he knelt down next to her. He was reluctant to touch her in the state she was in, but he had to get her out of the hallway. Gently, he picked her up. In his arms she continued to shake, and Hellboy could almost only see the whites of her eyes as he watched her. Panicking, he began to head in the direction of her room when he realized his own room was closer. He ran as quickly as he could while still holding Kate securely and reached his room shortly. Laying her down gently in his bed, Hellboy sat on the edge of the bed beside her, in a state of panic.

Professor Broom and Abe had left earlier on a trip, and Hellboy had no idea what to do. He left for a moment, returning quickly with a cold, wet towel which he placed on her forehead; she was incredibly hot and sweating. Watching her, he realized there wasn't anything else he could do for her. Feeling it might be best to simply wait it out, he took her clammy hand within his own.

"It'll be okay, kid," he whispered, not truly knowing if he was speaking the truth.

He felt helpless watching her tremble there in front of him, and he desperately wished Abe were there to know what to do to make her better. He continued to hold her pale hand between his red ones, hoping her condition would change soon.

It did, but it had been an excruciatingly long ten minutes before the shaking died down and she rested silently. Hellboy lifted the towel from her forehead and let his hand rest gently there for a moment, sighing with relief when he felt her fever had broken. Trying not to wake her, he lifted the covers over her small form and then crossed the room, falling into his leather chair. He breathed deeply for a moment, relaxing now that he knew whatever it was had passed. A nearby table served as his footrest, and Hellboy sunk back into the chair, watching Kate from across the room.

He wouldn't sleep that night.

* * *

**A/N: **Well, here's lucky chapter thirteen for you! I cannot begin to express how truly sorry I am this took such a long time to get out. My classes are killing me this semester. But, no excuses. I'm just glad I found some time to get this out. Thank you to The-Gothly-Emo, who has stuck with me this WHOLE time and then got this chapter back to me with corrections only a couple of hours after I sent it to her. How amazing is that?! Thank you to all my reviewers (we've made it past 100 reviews!) and to those of you who continue to read this little story. Take the time to leave a short review (although, longer ones are acceptable too, haha) because it really keeps me going. Again, thank you and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	14. Chapter 14

The soft mewing of cats and the faint smell of cigars were the first senses to greet Kate as she regained consciousness. Her eyes fluttered open and she found herself staring into dull, yellow orbs. The black cat watched her for a while, then lifted a tiny paw and placed it on Kate's cheek as if checking to see she were still alive.

"Sorry about that."

Hellboy's stone hand came into view and gently picked the cat off of Kate's chest. Kate couldn't help but wonder how the stone limb could be so gentle.

"She's curious," he said, his voice filling the room.

He petted the cat on the head before gently letting it down. His attention turned to Kate and he winced when he looked at her. Kate appeared so anemic it was a wonder she could move enough to prop herself up. Her hair had come loose from the bun she always wore it in and framed her face in an unruly mess. Her face glistened with sweat, as it had only been a few hours ago her fever had broken. Dark circles could be seen below her eyes, and her eyes themselves seemed different, the shade of chestnut dulled.

Kate had propped herself up completely, trying to make herself presentable despite her condition.

"How're you feeling, kid?"

Kate responded with a quiet chuckle. "Miserable, really."

More than anything, she was overjoyed. She hadn't thought she was going to make it the night before. It had been a relief to wake up in Hellboy's room and realize he had gotten to her in time.

Hellboy let his mouth curve into a small smile at her response.

"You went through hell last night, you know," he said, now serious and coming to sit on the bed beside her.

The bed sunk with his weight and a few cats scurried out from underneath.

"Thought you weren't gonna make it," he continued.

Clutching a fistful of blankets in her hand, Kate nodded. "I, uh…" She swallowed hard to fight back the emotion she felt. "I didn't think so either," she said softly.

A silence fell between the two that made Hellboy uncomfortable and he shifted positions.

"What happened?" he asked gently.

Hellboy knew he shouldn't be asking so soon, but he felt as though he deserved to know what brought on the severe attack after having the night he'd just had.

Kate broke eye contact with him almost immediately after his question. She was breathing heavily, and her next speech reflected this.

"I guess you've been out of the loop for too long," she said, choosing her words carefully.

Hellboy waited for her to continue.

"Last night…Ystehogol contacted me." She fell silent for a moment and then locked eyes with Hellboy. "This has been happening for a while," she explained, "but this was the first time it has ever happened when I was conscious."

Hellboy had to refrain from gaping. "How?"

Kate shook her head. "Professor Broom and I think he's sensed that I've been researching him and wanted to know who I was and why I was interested in him."

Hellboy was silent, so Kate went on with her explanation. "The first few times he contacted me were when I was sleeping. Abe thinks he isn't able to read the thoughts of someone who is asleep."

Hellboy still couldn't believe what he was hearing. "So, you're telling me this happened more than once, and nobody told me."

His tone was not questioning.

Kate sighed. "It was an unspoken rule between the three of us that this should be kept quiet. Ystehogol is obviously trying to find me, and the more people that know that the easier it is for him to read them, discover where I am, and get to me."

An orange cat jumped up on the bed and pushed its head under Kate's hand, demanding attention. Kate petted it absently as she watched Hellboy's reaction. He seemed more shocked than angry. Lines of worry were etched into his forehead, and his yellow eyes were focused intently on her.

"What happened last night?"

Kate shuddered at the memory. "He came too close to finding out who I am," she explained in a whisper which was barely audible. "If it hadn't been for Abe," she went on, "I think Ystehogol would have all the information he needed by now."

A questioning stare was Hellboy's only response.

"Abe and I have been working together to build up my resistance to Ystehogol's ability to read minds," Kate said. "Thank God for that," she whispered more to herself than to Hellboy.

"Just when I realized what was happening last night, I started to do what I had done in my lessons with Abe. I concentrated on blocking him out and it worked. I think there were a couple times when I almost lost control, and I think that if he'd been in the room with me there would've been no contest."

"So, he doesn't know anything?" asked Hellboy.

Kate hesitated. "He knows my name is Kate. That's all."

The memory was so fresh in her mind, Kate felt as though she were reliving it as she relayed the experience to Hellboy.

"I think I need to lie down," she said suddenly, and sunk back into the covers, resting her head on the pillow. It felt odd to be in Hellboy's bed, but not uncomfortable. The sheets smelled faintly of cigars and the scent was comforting somehow.

Hellboy, still absorbing everything he had been told, watched her lie there. She looked so small there in his bed.

"You know something, kid," he began.

Kate glanced up at him. "What?"

Hellboy leaned down. "You're pretty tough," he said with a smile.

Kate rolled her eyes. "Sure," she scoffed, but Hellboy shook his head.

"I mean it."

They left it at that.

They were silent for a while before Kate spoke softly. "I thought we weren't speaking anymore," she said. It felt childish to bring it up, but Kate needed to know for sure that Hellboy wasn't still angry with her.

Hellboy covered his face with his human hand for a moment before letting it drop to his side.

"Listen…I was wrong, okay? It wasn't your fault that I got grounded. And…I didn't mean what I said. You know, about us not being friends? I was just…mad."

Kate placed her hand over his which had been resting on the bed. "I get it. You're sorry," she said with a smile, finishing for him.

Hellboy nodded, but he had been watching her hand as she spoke. She'd wrapped her small hand around one of his stone fingers. He felt hesitation for a fleeting moment before enveloping her hand completely in his stone one. Hellboy glanced at Kate and saw she had been watching their hands also.

"Hey, kid," he said quietly.

Kate glanced up at him. "Hmm?"

"Don't let this whole thing get to you. We're all here for you."

Kate nodded, stunned. His attitude toward her had changed so suddenly. She didn't know this Hellboy. This Hellboy was comforting and gentle; he was nothing like the Hellboy she'd fought with a couple of days earlier.

She felt herself smiling beyond her control. "Thank you."

Hellboy smiled in return, content to sit with her there a while longer.

---

Abe heard voices as he approached Hellboy's room. He realized Kate must be in there with him. What surprised him was when he heard her laughter. Hadn't Hellboy called and said she was in serious danger? Confused, he pushed open the large, metal door slightly and peeked inside. Kate was propped up against the headboard of Hellboy's bed surrounded by cats and sipping a cup of coffee. Hellboy was sitting in his favorite leather chair, his back to the door. The two were watching television, and both seemed to be having a wonderful time.

"Watch this part, watch this part!" Hellboy said to Kate.

They focused on the screen closely and then suddenly both burst into laughter. Kate took her eyes off the television briefly to take a drink of her coffee and spotted Abe at the door.

"Hey, Abe!" she called.

Abe, no longer inconspicuous, opened the door fully and joined the pair, standing at the foot of Hellboy's bed. He gazed at the screen and saw the two were watching the Marx Brothers.

"_Duck Soup_," Kate explained.

Hellboy was too enraptured in the screen before him to notice Abe had entered the room. About five minutes later the film ended, and Hellboy took his eyes off the television for the first time since it had started.

"Abe!" he exclaimed, rising from his chair and patting his friend on the back roughly. "How was the trip?"

Abe rubbed the back of his neck. "Uneventful," he said simply, watching Kate with confusion. "Is something wrong? You called me quite flustered last night, Red."

Hellboy and Kate exchanged a look.

"I'll explain," said Kate finally, her expression now serious.

She went on to explain what had happened the night before, just as she had to Hellboy. Abe reacted just as she thought he would: extremely concerned.

"Good God, Kate! If this was the effect his powers had on you from a distance, just imagine what might have happened if he had been closer!" he exclaimed, coming to the bedside. "May I see what happened?"

Kate nodded reluctantly. She knew she'd relive the events if Abe planned to see them.

Abe leaned down to meet her eye-level and held up his hand. Hellboy watched the two touch palms and noted the pained expression on Kate's face which came immediately after the connection.

"Abe…" he called quietly.

Abe remained engrossed in Kate's memory.

"Abe, that's enough," he said a little louder, watching Kate squirm slightly at the flashback.

Abe broke the connection. Neither seemed to have notice Hellboy had spoken.

"This is serious," said Abe with a hoarseness not usually present in his voice.

Kate and Hellboy silently agreed, but there was nothing that could be done at the present time.

They were still in doubt as to Ystehogol's motives and had no clue where his next attack might occur. As much as Kate was determined to find out what Ystehogol was planning and put an end to it, she was, at the same time, reluctant to do so. The idea that he had come to her in a conscious state scared her more than ever. Unlike in her sleep, she was no longer protected and had to rely on Abe's lessons. The more she thought about what might happen to her if she continued on the case, the more she regretted ever coming to work at the Bureau. Hellboy had called her tough, but she felt anything but tough. She felt weak and scared and wished she was a little girl again at home with her parents there to protect her from the world. No one could protect her from Ystehogol.

The minute she felt herself becoming pessimistic, she regretted it. Abe had picked up on her worries as was staring intently at her. What she did not expect was for him to say simply, "We'll continue your lessons tomorrow, if you're feeling better," and walk back out the way he came.

Just as Kate had thought he'd left, he popped his head in one last time.

"Oh, Kate. I'll need to see you in the medical bay later, just to make sure there's no lasting damage from last night's events."

Kate nodded.

"_We'll work through this_," he communicated to her, and his voice rang clearly in her head.

Then, he was gone.

"Damn," said Hellboy, "I haven't seen him like this in a long time."

It was true. Hellboy could hardly remember the last time Abe was so worried. He was usually very calm when working on a case.

Kate sighed. "He's got a reason to be worried," she said, letting her head rest against the headboard.

The strain of what had taken place the night before still was having it's toll on Kate's body and mind, and the last person she needed to see at that moment was who stormed into Hellboy's room without warning. Manning looked akin to the Queen of Hearts, sporting a look that indicated he was ready to lop off Kate's head at any moment. Kate could practically see the smoke streaming from his ears. It was quite comical until he spoke.

"I asked you to do something simple. 'File those papers,' that's all I said. So, this morning I walked into the archive room expecting to see everything filed neatly and instead, I found myself stepping on piles of papers covering the floor. I gave you that simple little job, and you couldn't even handle _that_. Didn't I tell you that I could easily send you back to the library?"

Assuming this had been a rhetorical question, Kate merely watched him with hard eyes.

"Are you listening to me?" he yelled.

Kate responded with a simple nod. She wasn't going to bother telling him what had happened last night; he'd just assume it was a lie. In her present condition, Kate was simply content with taking anything he was dishing out, and taking it coolly without argument. There was no point in arguing with him anymore as he just wouldn't see reason.

He went on. "I don't know what the hell Trevor saw in you, but I'm thinking he made a poor choice in hiring you here. You're fit for the library, Dr. Hayward, not for work here at the Bureau."

This Kate could not brush off.

"What are you saying? Are you telling me you're going to fire me? Because I think no matter what you say, I've damn-well proved I deserve to be here and you're just pissed off because things aren't going your way. Those papers you gave me to file were almost impossible to organize, you knew that, and you also knew there was no way I was going to finish last night. You practically set me up for failure. I won't tolerate that kind of foul play, Dr. Manning, that was low, and I won't be fired because of your childishness."

For a brief time, she'd made Manning speechless. A flash of utter defeat befell his features before he puffed up again, ready to attack once more.

"What makes you think you can stop me from firing you? I'm the head of this operation! I've got the power to fire whoever I think doesn't belong here."

After watching the entire scene play out, Hellboy finally saw fit to enter the argument. "You can't fire her. Abe's gotta have someone to back him up if he's busy. You've got no idea what she went through last night. If I were you, I'd take a hike."

At this point, Manning was truly at a loss for words. When he finally seemed ready to speak up again,

Hellboy made a threatening move toward him and Manning raced from the room, turning back quickly to yell, "We're not through!"

Rolling his eyes, Hellboy looked at Kate who was smiling widely. "He's tried kicking me out of here before, but he never does. Manning's just…Manning."

Kate giggled. "You didn't have to do that," she said.

Hellboy shrugged. "Nah, you're probably right. Seemed like you were handling yourself damn well if you ask me."

Settling back into the bed, Kate let her head rest on the pillow. "I'm sick of people telling me I'm not capable of something," she replied simply.

Hellboy didn't press her further, and watched her relax into his bed.

Feeling his gaze on her, Kate spoke, slightly muffled by the pillow. "I'm sorry I'm hogging your bed."

Chuckling, Hellboy walked back to his leather chair and sank down into it. "Don't worry about it," he said. "Always thought my chair was better anyway."

He let out a satisfied sigh as he reclined back in his chair, and Kate laughed.

"What?" he said.

Kate laughed again. "I don't know. This whole morning has been so surreal, I guess. The first time I met you, I never thought we'd end up watching the Marx Brothers in your room and laughing together."

Hellboy laughed too. "You'd be surprised what being locked up down here does to you," he joked.

Kate thought for a second and bit her lip. "You regret anything?" she asked, worried he still might not be ready to accept her friendship.

Not able to get a clear view of him as he sat in his chair, Kate listened to him open a can of beer and take a gulp.

"Nope," was his only response.

Sighing happily, Kate snuggled into the blankets and let sleep overcome her.

* * *

**A/N:** Whew! It's done! I apologize for how long it's been lately between updates. Those last two months of the semester were killing me. But, now it's done! I've got my whole summer free, and I promise some more frequent updates. Again, thank you to The-Gothly-Emo for being an outstanding beta. Thanks also to those of you who have stuck with this story. I promise you that it will be finished. I will most definately not abandon this story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Remember to review! Reviews keep me going. Again, hope you liked the chapter!


	15. Chapter 15

"So, then what?"

"Hellboy scared him off and things are back to normal. Manning and I have come to a mutual understanding: he continues to do his job and I continue to do mine, and we don't cross paths."

Myers dropped a pile of papers on top of a stack and watched Kate with awe. "Wish I'd have been there to see it. I can't imagine the look on his face when you told him off."

Kate sniffed and adjusted her crooked glasses. "In my right mind I don't think I'd have stood up to him like that. I was sick and tired and pissed off and that combined made me a little crazy."

She lifted herself off the floor with a sigh and made her way over to another file cabinet. The archive room was secluded and Kate was glad to have the chance to talk with John without being interrupted.

He'd offered to help her get some work done, and she didn't hesitate to take him up on it. While it had been a couple of days since the attack, she'd spent most of her time in the medical bay with Abe making sure she had no lasting injuries and analyzing the attack to obtain any more information about their ghostly foe. That being the case, Kate had fallen behind on some filing, but had also gained a fresh interest in finding out what Ystehogol was up to. The attack had served only to add more fuel to the fire, and Kate was ready to dive into her research once more.

"You sure you're okay with this?" she asked, wondering if John really had some work of his own to accomplish. She appreciated his help, and wasn't about to let him go even if he did have work to get done, but it made her feel less guilty to ask.

Myers swiveled in the computer chair he was relaxed in to look at her. "Hey, I'm here to help in any way I can," he said with a smile.

Tossing a Manila folder his way, Kate said over her shoulder, "Go through that one."

She heard John chuckle lightly. "So, how was it?"

Kate was engrossed in her work. "What?" she asked softly, her mind on the papers in front of her.

"Spending the day with Red, how was it?"

Pausing, Kate bit her lip. "Just like how you'd imagine spending time with Hellboy would be," she replied nonchalantly, quickly adding, "His room is a mess."

The sounds of rustling papers filled the room. "You two made up, right?" His tone was hesitant.

Kate nodded before she realized John wasn't watching her. "Yeah."

The sudden slamming of a pile of papers caught Kate's attention and she watched Myers. "Okay, what's the deal? You're not telling me anything," he complained, attempting to cover up a smile.

Kate put a hand on her hip. "Nothing happened. I guess I'm just…still uncomfortable with the situation."

"What situation?"

Kate sighed. "I don't know. Being on friendly terms with Hellboy is just…weird, okay? It's not like I don't want it, it's just…weird."

The words weren't coming and she didn't know why. Why was it so hard to talk about Hellboy? Part of her felt as though the two should still be bickering and throwing around sarcastic banter and another part of her felt that she truly wanted Hellboy's friendship. The whole idea of the change was mind-blowing, and once again, Kate found herself battling her emotions. It was all too uncomfortable to handle.

She tossed another folder into John's lap. "Try that one," she said.

That ended the conversation.

They worked in silence for a while, content to simply be in each other's company. It was then Kate remembered something.

"John?"

"Hmm," he responded, reading a document.

"Where was it that Professor Broom and Abe went the other day?" She hadn't realized until then she'd never bothered to ask. Myers looked up from his work and shrugged.

"Dunno. They were pretty secretive about it all."

Kate mentally swore. She was hoping she wouldn't have to ask Abe about it, but it seemed she was going to have to.

"Oh, okay," she mumbled.

Switching to another file cabinet, Kate huffed as she pulled open the massive drawer. Its contents were all unlabeled. She thumbed through folders briefly before deciding on a particularly thin one and yanking it out. Opening it, she noticed it only contained a single paper; it looked like receipt of sorts, documenting the cost of a boat trip. The destination had been named as Bull Harbor, and the receipt was dated November 10, 1992.

"Found something?" called John, noticing Kate had become still.

"I don't know," she whispered, turning the paper over. The back was blank.

"Come here for a second," she said.

When John appeared looking over her shoulder, she raised the paper up to eye-level.

"What's this?" she asked.

Myers studied the paper a moment. "No idea," he said, looking at it closely. "Why did this once catch your eye?" he asked, reaching out to take it from her.

"There's nothing else in that folder," she said, holding the folder in her hand. "Every other folder is packed tight, but this one only had that paper in it. The paper itself isn't even informative; it's just a receipt or something, I guess, but it's vague. Why do you think this needed a folder of its own?"

Taking the paper with him back to his chair, John shook his head and plopped down onto the seat.

"Couldn't tell you. It's probably not that important if it was all that was in the folder."

Kate nodded but didn't agree. It could also have meant that it was very important. Walking to John, she took the paper from him and folded it, placing it in her trouser pocket.

"You sure you're okay?" John said suddenly, watching her back as her shoulders slumped. "What happened the other day was really serious," he said.

Smiling, Kate turned to him. "Next time something happens to me and I'm not okay, you'll be the first to know."

John's radio suddenly beeped and he quickly put in his earpiece. "Manning's looking for me," he said reluctantly, getting up from his chair.

"Keep at it, you'll find something," he said to her, noticing the hint of hopelessness in her features. He patted her on the shoulder before leaving.

Heaving a sigh, Kate began cleaning up, realizing she wasn't going to find anything else at that time.

Once the archive room had been tidied up, she headed to the library, intent on finding Abe. When she approached the golden doors, she dredged up the strength she needed and pushed them open.

Immediately once the doors had been opened, Kate leaned against the golden panel, exhausted and still weak from her ordeal. Straightening her suit jacket, she pressed on, only to find the room completely empty. Why was it that Abe was never in his tank when she needed to talk to him?

She crossed the room to Professor Broom's desk, looking for paper to leave Abe a note that she needed to speak with him. A paper with a list of names distracted her from her mission. Picking it up, she glanced at the names. It was the list which Broom had showed her before, filled with the names of previous B.P.R.D. agents he had written down from memory. Twelve of the names had been crossed off. Kate closed her eyes momentarily, wondering how many more agents would be killed before she could find out Ystehogol's pattern of killing. Reviewing the list again, something struck her; why were there only seventeen agents listed? Surely there must have been more retired agents than that. She flipped the list over, but the back was blank. Could Broom truly have only remembered seventeen previous agents, or was there something special about these particular people? The more she thought about it, the more she wondered. She realized she couldn't ask Broom himself about it as he had obviously not told her for a reason when he'd shown her the list. Would Abe know anything? He might, but he and Broom were being so secretive lately, going on trips without telling anyone what for. Then it struck her. Hellboy must know of previous agents; he'd been with the Bureau for a long time. Maybe he would know about these particular agents.

Shoving the list into her pocket, Kate headed back out into the hallway. Immediately, she ran into Agent Clay. "Clay," she called.

Clay looked up from where he'd been speaking to another agent and watched her near him. He wrapped up his conversation quickly, and Kate reached him just as the other agent was leaving.

"You know where Hellboy is?" she asked.

There was a gleam in his eye for a moment and Kate got the impression that he knew she'd spent that day in Hellboy's room, but maybe not of the reason why.

"He's in the locker room," he said simply.

Kate nodded and was off, trying to ignore the idea that the other agents may have been harboring lascivious thoughts about her and Hellboy.

Kate had never been to the locker room before, and it took some asking around to find exactly where it was located in the maze of the B.P.R.D. headquarters. When she reached the room, she found it empty.

The room was crude to say the least; there were some showers around the corner and green lockers lined the walls. In the center of the room was a wooden bench. Tentatively, she made her way into the room.

"Hellboy?" she called quietly. No answer came.

She walked further into the room, but he was clearly not there. Coming around the corner, Kate began to call for him again.

"Hellboy–" She stopped dead in her tracks.

Before her stood Hellboy with his back to her; he was completely naked.

Kate's heart stopped dead in her chest for a moment. Quickly, she spun around and braced herself against the wall, thoroughly shocked and mortified. Hellboy, completely amused, chuckled behind her and reached for a towel.

"See something you like?" he teased, still chuckling as he watched her clutch the wall frantically.

His remark only served to make Kate even more embarrassed, and she waited for her heart to return to its normal rate.

"You can turn around, you know," he said.

Kate turned slowly, her face completely red. "I, uh…" She couldn't find words.

"You need something, or did you just come for the scenery?" Hellboy was clearly milking the situation for all it was worth.

Trying to push aside her embarrassment, Kate reached into her pocket and pulled out the list of names.

"Broom wrote these names down and told me they were all the retired B.P.R.D. agents he could remember. Wouldn't there be more than seventeen?"

Hellboy nodded. "Oh, yeah. There've been tons." He came to stand in front of her and took the paper.

"Is there anything those particular agents have in common, besides the fact they are all retired?" Kate asked.

Hellboy looked over the names. Kate's face still felt flush, and she couldn't help but realize how close they were standing.

Scrutinizing the names, Hellboy shrugged. "I know who they are, but I don't know what they've got in common," he said, handing the list back to her.

Kate nodded, disheartened. "Thanks anyway," she said, but was still determined to find out why those particular agents were listed.

The purpose of her visit to the locker room had been fulfilled, and Kate suddenly felt the wave of humiliation return. "I'll uh…see you later," she squeaked, backing out of the room slowly. Hellboy chuckled.

Just as she was leaving, she heard Hellboy call, "Hope you enjoyed the show."

Running, Kate made it to her own room in good time, and quickly entered, locking the door behind her.

Absolute mortification was the strongest emotion she felt. What was worse was that the entire scenario was playing itself over and over in her head. Nothing could have been worse. Immediately Kate realized it _could_ have been worse, and tried not to think of it. Going to sit on her bed, she fell backwards and stared up at the ceiling.

Despite all other thoughts of the humiliation she'd experienced, one forbidden thought could not be silenced: Hellboy had a nice ass.

* * *

**A/N: **Yes, an update in less than three weeks! I know this one is a bit shorter, but I liked where this ended, so I didn't want to add more here. Enjoy it? I hope so! As always, thanks to my wonderful beta, The-Gothly-Emo. Also, thanks to all my reviewers! This story has gotten more reviews than I ever expected it would, and I love to hear what you all have to say about the story, good or bad (as long as it's constructive). It's truly helpful to know when I've done something right or wrong, and I appreciate those who have left reviews. Please take the time to leave a review. Thanks!


	16. Chapter 16

Clothes were flying across her room every which way as Kate rifled through her closet full of business attire. She was too excited to care that she was making a mess of her floor.

Professor Broom had said he was going to pay a visit to one of the retired B.P.R.D. agents. Kate had, at first, been disappointed to hear that Broom alone would have the opportunity to interrogate the former agent, but he'd invited Abe, Hellboy, and herself to come along. Even more exciting, was that this particular agent was one included on Broom's mysterious list.

Holding up a tweed suit in front of her, Kate huffed and threw the clothes over her head. Broom had indicated that Kate should wear something less formal so as not to attract attention on their excursion.

_Psh, as if Abe and Hellboy wouldn't stand out_, she'd thought. But, Broom had covered that as well. The pair would follow them "secretly," Broom had said, and Kate was left only to imagine how they would get to the location without being seen.

She pulled out another dark pencil skirt and matching jacket, adding it to the growing pile covering her floor and bed. Absolutely nothing was going to work. Defeated, Kate sat dejectedly on her bed, resting her chin on her palms. A thought came to her and she glanced at the clock, grinning when she saw she still had a few hours before she had to meet Broom in the library. After diving for her bag on the other side of her bed, Kate then righted herself and headed for the door, taking a quick look in the mirror on her wall and adjusting her glasses. She slipped briefly on a grey skirt, but the door handle had saved her, and she exited the room swiftly thereafter.

---

The library was empty when Kate arrived there around six, and she grabbed the book of Edgar Allen Poe poems from its new place on the shelf and sat on the couch. She wetted her finger and began flipping through pages until she reached the poem she'd found the book open to that day at the library.

"_Thy soul shall find itself alone, 'mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone_," she read aloud.

She read the line over once more in her head. Ystehogol was foreshadowing a death…but whose death? One of the agents on Broom's list?

"_The spirits of the dead who stood in life before thee are again in death around thee and their will shall then overshadow thee_."

It was a threat; it was almost a vow to whoever Ystehogol had threatened to kill that he would have eternal revenge. For what?

"_The breeze – the breath of God – is still, and the mist upon the hill. Shadowy, shadowy, yet unbroken, is a symbol and a token_."

"Beautiful, isn't it?" came Broom's voice.

Kate snapped the book closed in an instant and looked up at him where he was standing in front of her, his hat already placed atop his head, his jacket hanging over his shoulder, and his cane in hand.

"Beautiful," Kate repeated, "but eerie."

Broom grinned. "One can often interpret a poem in a different way than another, Dr. Hayward."

He smiled down at her and Kate thought. Was it true? Was she interpreting Poe's words the way she was only because she so strongly believed it was a message from Ystehogol?

Shuffling from across the room alerted her to a third presence, and Kate craned her neck to see Abe adjusting his breathing apparatus.

"Ah, Kate. You look well," he said cheerfully as he crossed the room.

Kate rose from the couch and went to put away the book. "I'm feeling better," she replied.

When she saw Hellboy approaching from the doorway she turned from his view, still humiliated at their last meeting the day before.

"Damn," he breathed, and Kate instinctively turned to see what had shocked him.

To her surprise, he was staring straight at her. Using Hellboy's useful escape route, Kate had left earlier to shop for some civilian clothes and was currently sporting a pair of jeans, a grey t-shirt, and some white tennis shoes. She'd even worn her hair in a ponytail, rather than her traditional bun. While her apparel was nothing special, Hellboy's reaction reminded her of how snug her new clothes were fitting her. Anything she'd tried on that day seemed to fit the same way, and she'd simply assumed that was the current style. Suddenly, she felt overexposed and clutched her bag to her stomach.

Hellboy, embarrassed at his outburst, rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"You look different," he mumbled, then gave her a sly grin. "Dressed up for the occasion?"

Kate raised a finger in protest and was about to retort before Broom spoke first. "I thought it would be best if we didn't alarm our interviewee with formal attire," he said pleasantly.

Hellboy's smirk disappeared, and he sighed impatiently. "Are we ready?" Abe and Broom both nodded. "Okay then," said Hellboy.

"Come with me, Dr. Hayward," said Broom. "We'll meet them a bit later."

Nodding, Kate went to follow him, but caught Abe gesturing for her to come over to him. Briefly heading his way, she leaned in to hear him. "He thinks you look nice," he whispered.

When Kate appeared confused, Abe tapped a finger to his head and then indicated Hellboy. Kate followed his gaze and watched Hellboy shrug into his signature leather coat. What was so attractive about jeans and a t-shirt? As the thought crossed her mind, there was a twinkling in Abe's eyes. He left her then with a pat on the shoulder, and Kate caught up with Broom at the golden doors.

---

The taxi ride had been short, as Agent Gold's home was not located far from headquarters. They'd even taken a real taxi, wanting to make as little fuss with the Bureau as possible. Broom had not spoken a word to Kate, and she wondered if he was anticipating the meeting as much as she was. When the taxi came to a stop, it was in front of the last house on the street. On one side of the house, the next house over was built with two feet of space between the buildings, but on the other side was an expansive park. Kate stepped out onto the curb first, helping Broom out next and then handing him his cane.

"Thank you," he breathed, looking up at the house.

"Professor, did you let Dr. Manning know that–"

"What Tom doesn't know won't hurt him," he answered indifferently, already making his way towards the Gold residence.

Allowing a satisfied smirk to creep into her features, Kate followed behind him, quickly grabbing her bag from the back seat of the cab and handing some money to the driver. At the top of the steps leading to the front door, Broom pushed the doorbell with the base of his cane. There was some rustling from the other side, and the door creaked open slightly.

"Trevor?"

Broom smiled. "Yes, James. It's me."

Obviously satisfied with Broom's answer, Gold pushed open the door fully. "It's great to see you," he said, but his features held no trace of happiness.

"It's unfortunate our meeting must be under these circumstances," said Broom solemnly.

Gold nodded. "Come in." He disappeared into the darkness of his home, leaving Broom and Kate to follow behind him.

Once they were in, Kate closed the door behind her and waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. It was a wonder anyone could see, as there was not one single light on in the entire house. Gold led them to a sitting room and sat in a worn armchair. Kate sat with Broom on a couch across from him.

"James, this is Dr. Katherine Hayward," he said hastily, clearly just remembering she was with him.

Kate nodded in Gold's direction, and Gold returned the gesture.

"I see you have made it here safely as well," Broom said, and Kate wondered who he was talking to until she saw the outlines of Abe and Hellboy standing behind Gold's chair.

Gold spun around to look up at them and brought his hand to his heart. "You can't sneak up on me like that," he said reproachfully to the pair. "These days I'm always wondering if I'm being followed."

Abe took a seat next to Gold in another chair, and Hellboy came to sit next to Kate. The three were now so crammed on the couch, as Hellboy took up a great deal of space, that Kate's leg kept bumping into Hellboy's.

The group was silent until Abe focused intently on Gold. "What has happened?" he asked, sensing Gold's nervousness.

Gold, who Kate could scarcely see, ran a hand through his shock of dark hair. "Nothing yet," he said, his voice barley above a whisper.

"We wanted to continue our discussion from the other day, James," explained Broom.

Kate sat up straighter. Wait, Broom had already visited him before? So, that's where they'd been that day she was attacked; they'd been here. She glanced at Hellboy who stared back at her, apparently having the same revelation. They were quiet again for a while.

"What else is there to say? I only knew about the trip, Trevor, but I never found out what happened. Nobody did. You were the only one that went."

Hellboy's head shot up. "What trip?"

Sighing, Broom leaned forward. "Some years ago, I'm sure you remember that I left on a long expedition. I'd been gone so long, that you'd assumed I had been killed."

Instantly picking up on what he was talking about, Hellboy asked, "What happened?"

"He doesn't know," said Abe, shaking his head. "I've even worked to locate a memory from those six months he was missing, but there isn't anything left…just blackness from the moment he stepped on the boat until his return home."

Boat?

"Professor," said Kate, reaching frantically for her bag at her feet. "You weren't by chance leaving to go to a place called…" She felt the paper in her grasp and pulled it from her bag, unfolding it to read the faded text. "…Bull Harbor?"

Broom leaned closer to view the paper in her hands. "As a matter of fact, yes." He took the receipt. "November 10th, 1992. Yes, that was when I left for the Arctic."

"The Arctic?" asked Hellboy. Broom did not acknowledge his question.

Kate was beginning to piece the puzzle together. "This list," she continued, pulling the list of agents from her bag. "Are these the agents who…who knew about this excursion?"

Broom watched her approvingly. "It seems you weren't far behind me in my own discovery, Dr. Hayward. Yes, that list is the list of retired B.P.R.D. agents who were told of my trip before I left. When I was notified of the previous agents' deaths labeled as unknown causes, I tried to find any common traits between them. I soon realized that these were the agents who I had met with to discuss my expedition before I left."

Hellboy leaned across Kate to look Broom in the eyes. "Wait, you're saying seventeen other guys knew about this, but you never told me?"

He sounded furious, not hurt, and Broom merely sighed. "I did not want you coming with me. The expedition had the potential for being extremely dangerous, and I had no idea what would happen–"

"So? I do that kind of stuff all the time," said Hellboy indignantly.

"These attacks we'd heard of weren't caused by some brainless monster," said Gold suddenly. "Natives were being tortured in their sleep when nothing was around, waking up with unexplained injuries. Scientists who'd gone to research the problem were not coming back alive. They weren't normal attacks; everything had to do with the mind. People went crazy, or died from internal injuries that no doctor had an explanation for."

He closed his eyes. "It wasn't normal," he repeated quietly.

From the way Gold was turning pale, Kate suspected the case must have been taxing on all the agents involved.

As if Broom had read her thoughts, he spoke. "I took the burden upon myself to go and see what was causing the attacks, as many of the agents were too uncomfortable with the excursion."

"And you have no memory at all?" asked Kate softly, engrossed in the new information.

Broom shook his head. "But…you think this has something to do with Ystehogol? You think he caused those attacks?" she pressed.

"These attacks are real similar to the ones that were happening in the Arctic," said Gold, grasping the arms of his chair so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.

Kate watched him. "But, what would Ystehogol want from these agents?"

Clearly, it was not a subject Gold wished to approach, as he visibly tensed.

Broom noticed his discomfort, but addressed Kate. "It's impossible to say right now."

Kate thought for a moment. Something must have happened on that trip that Broom couldn't remember. Ystehogol obviously knew about these agents, so he must have come into contact with Broom all those years ago. Had Broom done something to anger him? Maybe his revenge was to kill these agents.

Gold seemed physically uncomfortable, and Broom watched him quiver in his chair. "Would you like us to send some agents here to protect you?"

Gold shook his head, but looked unsure. "No, I-I'll be alright. Just…try to find out what it wants and stop it."

"We'll do everything we can," said Broom comfortingly.

Looking at his watch, he made to stand up. "Well, I believe we've already taken up enough of your time, James. I'm sorry for the trouble we've caused you."

Gold shook his head frantically as he rose to escort the group out. "No, no. I'm glad you warned me. I just…want to stay safe."

Broom took his hand and smiled warmly. "You will."

---

By the time they arrived back at the Bureau, Broom seemed exhausted and went off to bed soon after returning. For Kate, it was still too early to turn in, so she waited in the library for Abe and Hellboy to return. It wasn't long before Hellboy burst through the golden doors, holding a six-pack and gulping a beer.

"Where's Abe?" asked Kate, peering around Hellboy to see if the he was following behind.

Hellboy shrugged. "Said he had something to do," he said, breaking off a can from the pack and tossing it to Kate.

She caught it and eyed the can warily. "I don't drink," she said simply.

Hellboy plopped down on the couch next to her, took the can from her and opened it, then handed it back. "Just drink it," he said.

Sighing, Kate took a quick sip, scrunching up her face in disgust. When he wasn't looking, she set the can politely on the coffee table in front of them. Remembering something, she reached into her bag.

"Professor Broom asked if I'd give this to you." She held up a _Baby Ruth_ candy bar in front of him.

Chuckling, Hellboy took the candy from her. "Thanks, kid," he said, punching her lightly in the shoulder with his stone hand.

Trying not to look pained, Kate rubbed her shoulder briefly. "Where'd you get that, anyway?" she said, indicating the beer. He'd hardly have had time to get it from the kitchen.

"Swiped it from some guy in the park," he explained, taking another gulp.

Kate smiled and shook her head. He certainly seemed to have cooled off considerably after their meeting with Gold. Staring lazily into Abe's tank, she heard the sound of a crinkling candy wrapper and glanced at Hellboy. He'd proceeded to pop the entire candy bar in his mouth and was chewing loudly.

"Didn't want some, did ya?" he asked, noticing she was watching him.

Kate laughed. "No. No, I'm fine," she said, giggling as he finished the candy.

"What?" he asked.

Kate laughed again. "Nothing, I just didn't realize beer and candy went so well together." She couldn't stop laughing, and now her stomach was beginning to hurt.

He looked mildly offended sitting there with a beer in one hand and chocolate all over his face. "That beer going to your head, kid?"

Holding her stomach, she shook her head but couldn't speak. It wasn't long before her laughter became infectious. Hellboy suddenly began laughing too, and it was a while before they'd both calmed down enough to speak.

"Here," said Kate, still letting out a few remaining giggles. She reached into her bag and produced a tissue, handing it to Hellboy to wipe his face. He did so and then tossed it behind him.

"I think we needed that," she said, thankful for the laughter after such a serious meeting. Hellboy nodded. Kate leaned back into the couch and Hellboy did the same.

"You worried about all of this?" she asked, becoming serious.

Hellboy watched her gaze out into Abe's tank. He thought for a minute, then punched her in the shoulder. "Nah. I'll handle it. That thing won't even know what hit him," he said, feigning cheerfulness. "What about you?"

Kate shrugged. "Not really," she breathed, but she was only kidding herself; she _was_ worried.

There was a moment where Hellboy simply watched her face fall, lines of worry etched into her features. Without warning, he reached for her glasses and pulled them away from her face. Kate watched him, confused. He scrutinized her for some time, turning his head to look at her from different angles.

Handing the glasses back to her, he nodded as if coming to an important conclusion. "You need contacts, kid."

Giggling, Kate put her glasses on. Her cheeks felt warm. "I'll think about it," she said with a smile.

There was a splashing sound then, and Abe was suddenly in his tank, swimming effortlessly through the water. The mood quickly changed now that there was someone else in the room and Kate and Hellboy both instinctively moved away from each other.

Of course, Abe picked up on the change right away. "What?" he said, treading water.

Kate quickly reached for the beer sitting in front of her and took a nervous gulp. "Nothing."

* * *

**A/N: **Alright, I've got a few different notes today:

So, first of all, I want to give a huge thanks to everyone who reviewed on chapter fifteen. Thanks, you guys!

Second, I wanted to explain a something about this chapter. If you are familiar with the comics, Broom goes to the Arctic in November of 1992 with the Cavendish brothers where they run into Rasputin. Rasputin turns the brothers into frog creatures, but lets Broom escape unharmed. Obviously, this is not what happens in this story. I've taken the idea that Broom went on this excursion to the Arctic and that he has no memory of what happened, but I am changing the events which took place there. No Rasputin, okay? I'm just letting those familiar with the comics know so I don't receive reviews telling me I've gotten the story wrong. I know.

Last, but not least, today is the one year anniversary of _Need_! I can't believe a year has gone by since I began this story! I really just want to thank everyone for sticking with me through my slow updates, and for continuing to read. I'm really glad you are all enjoying the story, and I love writing it.

Well, I think that's about it. As always, take the time to leave a review. I really appreciate the feedback. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	17. Chapter 17

Kate spun absently in her chair, making the conference room look like a blur of chrome with occasional red and blue blotches. When she began to feel lightheaded, she stopped and peered dizzily at the newspaper article on the table in front of her, the text coming in and out of focus. If the article had been any help at all, she might have been more interested in reviewing it again, but Kate merely shoved it aside with a defeated sigh. It was one of the few articles she had been able to find which dealt with the mysterious Arctic attacks, and the Bureau had obviously had a hand in how much information was released to the general public. While it did mention a few victims and their injuries, the article claimed the cause of the injuries may not have been attacks, but outbreaks of a rare disease which caused a variety of symptoms. Kate removed her glasses and rubbed her eyes, agitated. Across from her, Hellboy drummed his fingers absently on the cool metal table. Abe sat at the head of the table, a few folders in front of him containing some additional articles. They'd been at it for two days, searching every file and every book that might lead them to a better understanding of exactly what happened on Broom's trip to the Arctic, and if his loss of memory and the attacks had anything to do with Ystehogol. So far, it seemed their efforts had been wasted as there was a lack of information on the subject.

"Read me the next one, Abe," said Kate, laying her head on the table.

Abe cleared his throat and pulled an article out of the folder in his hands. "'Scientist found dead in Arctic home: Scientist Harold Jacobs was discovered dead in his Arctic home this weekend. Jacobs showed no sign of external injuries, and it is presumed his death was the result of a severe heart attack—'"

"Damn it," Kate breathed, running her fingers through her hair. "Why can't we find just one article the Bureau hasn't tampered with?"

It was obvious Jacobs had been attacked by Ystehogol, but they still held no proof as long as their sources made no claim of the creature's involvement.

"What's the date on that article, Abe?" asked Kate.

Abe scanned the page. "1992," he replied.

Hellboy sighed. "Why the hell would Ystehogol have waited this long between killings? We haven't seen any other articles of killings after 1992."

He had a point. Why had the killings suddenly stopped? And why had they just recently started up again?

"Perhaps he went into hiding," voiced Abe.

Kate and Hellboy waited for him to continue.

"It's possible that Ystehogol became worried that the exposure of his attacks would lead to his being found. He could have gone into hiding to assure that he would not be discovered."

Scratching the back of her head, Kate let her eyes rest on her lap as she thought. "But then why start killing again now? Wouldn't he still be worried about being found?"

Abe's large orbs scanned the room slowly, an action Kate had come to understand meant he was thinking deeply.

The three stayed silent until Hellboy grumbled and made to get up from his seat. "Well," he began, "we're obviously not getting anywhere. I say we give it up."

Kate slumped back in her chair. As much as she didn't want to give up, she had to admit that Hellboy was right; things were just going nowhere. "Fine," she said, "we'll give it a rest for now."

Hellboy nodded and headed towards the door just as Myers came rushing in with a folder in his hands. "Hey–the autopsy results are in. You know, the agents in the library?"

Kate brightened and stood. "Let me see."

John handed her the folder and the four crowded around to see the papers. Kate scanned the document quickly, excited for answers.

"'No visible head trauma'…'no internal bleeding'…'no signs of disease, organ failure, or lasting physical injuries.'" She stopped reading, her mouth becoming dry.

"There must be some mistake," whispered Abe.

Hellboy breathed a curse. Myers looked perplexed. Kate gazed down at the papers in her hands, shuffling through each one and skimming the text. Discouraged, she shut the folder abruptly. Her cheeks began to redden, and she glanced at the group.

"This is it? This can't be right. I–we saw them there, dead. There's no way they could have shown absolutely no injuries or internal damage. Somebody killed them and they were laying there dead." The images of the dead agents were vividly flashing behind her eyes. "They were dead," she squeaked, and her eyes glazed over.

What was left? There was no evidence to prove their claims that Ystehogol had been the source of any of the attacks. Nothing was certain, and nothing further could be done.

Defeated, Kate's shoulders slumped and she handed the folder back to Myers dejectedly. Myers looked down at the folder and then at her, his expression sympathetic. Abe reached out and took Kate's hand, and in a moment Kate felt her mind go blank, all disturbing images and thoughts of worry erased. She gazed at him wearily and procured a sad smile.

"Thanks." Her voice was barely audible.

Abe nodded. "You are going to rest for a while," he instructed, and if her mood had been lighter, Kate would have thought he sounded like a concerned parent. He began nudging her out of the conference room.

"John," said Kate over her shoulder, "call them up and confirm those were the correct results." She knew it was hopeless, but she couldn't help wanting make completely sure. Myers nodded once and was off, but not before flashing her his boyish smile.

Walking down the hallway with Abe, Kate looked behind them to see if Hellboy had followed, but he was nowhere in sight. Frowning, she shook off some unfamiliar feeling and continued onward, willing herself not to think of him. When they'd reached the library, Kate plopped down on the couch and curled up with a pillow. The warm expansive space in the library provided a comfort which her chrome-plated cell could never offer.

"Everything alright?" called Professor Broom's voice from across the room. Kate didn't turn to look, but she assumed he had been working at his desk when they'd come in.

"Just taking a break, Professor," said Abe, returning to the hallway once he was sure Kate was settled.

"We've all been working too hard," he finished just before leaving, nodding towards Kate.

When Abe had gone, Kate desperately tried to let herself rest, but her thoughts were racing. How could the autopsy results have returned with no cause of death? They'd been tampered with. How? Could Ystehogol have done it? He must be trying to lay low and keep the B.P.R.D. from finding out about him. Then it struck her. Could that be the reason for the differences in information the books offered about Ystehogol? It was possible; Ystehogol would want to remain mysterious. But, what does he have to hide? If he's so dangerous and invincible, what wouldn't he want known?

She was beginning to nod off amidst her train of thoughts when a loud snore startled her. Kate sat up and noticed that Professor Broom had fallen asleep at his desk, leaning back in his chair with his glasses on the tip of his nose. Smiling warmly, Kate went to settle back into the couch when Broom began to mumble.

"Professor?" whispered Kate, wondering if he had stirred.

He was silent. Glancing at the tank, Kate hoped to see Abe, be he was not there. Again, Broom mumbled, and Kate stood and crossed the room, stopping to watch him from across his desk. He was dreaming, it seemed. Kate could see his eyes moving rapidly beneath his lids.

As his murmurs became more coherent, Kate could discern only one word. "Jacobs," he said softly, his brow furrowing in distress. "Jacobs," he said again, this time louder.

The name stuck Kate, but she wasn't sure why. Who was Jacobs? One of the agents? Someone he had worked with? Suddenly, she remembered. The article—Harold Jacobs had been the Arctic scientist named in the article. Broom had quieted, but he continued to appear distressed. They must have known each other. Did that mean Broom had come into contact with him while in the Arctic? Kate started. If he remembered Jacobs, that meant he had memory of being in the Arctic. Kate moved around the desk and knelt down at Broom's side.

"Professor," she said gently, giving him a slight shake. "Professor."

Broom's eyes fluttered open, and he scanned the room quickly before he saw her beside him.

"Oh, Doctor," he said sighing, as if he had been worriedly expecting to find someone else. "You startled me. I was just taking a nap—"

"Professor, do you know the name Jacobs?"

Professor Broom contemplated this for a moment. "Jacobs…Jacobs…"

"Harold Jacobs," Kate pressed, desperately searching his eyes for any signs of recognition.

Finally, Broom shook his head. "I can't recall a Jacobs, Dr. Hayward. Why do you ask?"

Hanging her head, Kate sighed before addressing him. "It's nothing, Professor."

Maybe it _had_ been nothing, but Kate wasn't willing to admit that it had been merely coincidental. For now, it was the only piece of evidence she had to hang on to.

XxXxX

Professor Broom had been truly worried about her after their exchange in the library. He'd insisted she get some sleep as she'd been working too hard and it was going to take a toll on her physical health if she didn't let herself rest. So, she'd gone back to her room, taken a shower, and paced the floor, hoping to make herself exhausted enough to force her to sleep. It was then that there was a knock at her door.

Kate rushed to grab a robe to tie around her pajamas, and pulled the door open, entirely shocked to see Hellboy standing on the other side. Hellboy too seemed shocked, as he was seeing a Kate he didn't know. He had never seen her so dressed down, and had never seen her hair loose, the auburn locks barely reaching her shoulder blades. Momentarily, he was stunned speechless, but quickly remembered why he had come.

"Figured you'd wanna get out for a bit and take a walk. You up for it?"

Too eager to get away from the Bureau, Kate forgot her usual sarcastic banter and pulled at his stone hand, signaling for him to come inside.

"Just a second," she said once the door had closed behind him.

Rushing to her closet, she grabbed the jeans and t-shirt she'd worn to the interview with Gold, and stole away to the bathroom to change. Hellboy observed the room distastefully, glad that he had been allowed to arrange his own room to his liking.

"Don't you think Manning has started to catch on to these little trips away from the Bureau?" asked Kate from inside the bathroom.

Hellboy scoffed and sat down on the edge of her bed. "Do you really think he's that smart?" he retorted.

There was a pause. "Good point."

Kate emerged smirking. She crossed the room to grab her bag, then went searching for a hair tie.

Finding one, she began to pull her hair up when Hellboy surprised her.

"Just leave it," he said, clearly trying to make it seem like she was taking too long, but the phrase came out rather frantic instead. Pausing, Kate studied him silently before tossing the hair tie aside and reaching for a brush instead. When she was finished, the two headed towards the door and left together in awkward silence.

The street lights were flickering eerily as the pair made their way down the empty street. Most of the city's residents had long since turned out their lights and gone to bed, and it was nearing one o'clock when Kate and Hellboy turned a corner to walk a different street."What're you thinking about?" asked Hellboy, his voice low.

Kate wrapped her arms around herself. "I'm thinking that I need to stop thinking about work."

Hellboy chuckled. "That's not gonna happen, is it?"

Kate shook her head. "Definitely not."

After a short silence had fallen between them, Kate glanced up at him. "What about you?"

Hellboy seemed as though he was taken off guard and struggled for words. "Nothing much," he finally answered.

Kate eyed him suspiciously, but kept silent. They had come upon a park, and Kate gazed out at a bench, realizing how sore her feet were becoming.

"Mind if we rest a while?" she asked, indicating the bench.

Hellboy nodded and they started off towards the bench. It was then Kate became aware that the park seemed familiar, and realized it was the one adjacent to Gold's house where they had been a couple of evenings ago. They reached the bench, Hellboy sighing nervously as he sat. Kate let her head rest against the back of the bench and closed her eyes. A cold wind was picking up, and Kate began to notice goose bumps on her arms. She must have looked cold, because Hellboy was suddenly taking his coat off and trying to drape it around her shoulders. Embarrassed, Kate refused to take it, and was reminded of her first outing with Myers.

"I'm okay," she said, shivering while she spoke.

"Don't be stupid. Just take it," Hellboy responded, placing around her. He indicated the black, long-sleeved shirt he was wearing so she wouldn't worry about him.

Kate nodded in thanks. The coat was warm and Kate found herself snuggling into it, comforted by the same smell she had come across while laying sick in his bed weeks earlier. Hellboy, meanwhile, was acutely aware of their shoulders touching, and was trying to distract himself watching an ant traipse across the sidewalk in front of them.

"You know the last time we took a walk," Kate began, "was back in my first week at the Bureau." She fell silent, lost in thought.

"You hated me then," said Hellboy, looking sideways at her with a smirk.

Kate laughed and gazed skyward.

"You still hate me?" asked Hellboy. His tone was light, but there was an undercurrent of seriousness in the question.

Kate looked up at him. "No," she answered with a smile. "In fact," she went on, "I think you're perfectly tolerable."

Hellboy laughed heartily. "Tolerable? Well, coming from you, I'd say that's a damn good compliment."

His smile faded when he looked down at her, and Kate thought she caught his eyes linger on her lips for an instant.

A deafening wail echoed throughout the park. Hellboy jumped up and scanned their surroundings for the source. Kate followed slowly, her heart pounding in her chest. A beam of light caught their attention and both simultaneously realized it came from Agent Gold's house.

Hellboy and Kate bolted across the park towards the house, each dreading what they might find when they reached it. They bounded up the front steps and Hellboy pulled at the door handle, and finding it locked, knocked it down with one blow from his stone hand. The two entered the same dark room they had sat in two nights ago. The beam of light had disappeared, and the house was entirely silent.

Hellboy procured his gun from his belt and pushed Kate behind him. Holding the gun up, he shuffled into the darkness. Kate remained close behind him, dreading to think she knew what they might come across. The room felt colder than it had seconds ago, and Kate found herself shivering once more.

"You aren't afraid, are you, my dear?"

The voice was all too familiar, and Kate shrunk behind Hellboy, placing her hands over her ears.

Hellboy kept his free hand on her, and shot at the area where the voice had sounded. A dark chuckling resounded in response.

"Come, come. You can do better than that, can't you?" teased the voice with a sinister tone.

Hellboy suddenly doubled over, the result of an invisible blow to the stomach. In the second his attention was diverted from her, Kate became the target, and felt herself being dragged to the middle of the room.

"We meet at last," whispered the voice in her ear. Kate felt fingers being pressed severely into her sides, and was aware of hot breath on the back of her neck. She struggled desperately, but to no avail; her captor had her in a strong grip.

"Kid!" yelled Hellboy, his eyes going wide. Obviously he was seeing something she wasn't.

Straining to turn her head, Kate came to face those familiar golden eyes sunk into dark sockets.

Ystehogol's face was skeletal and void of any color save for his bright eyes which held no pupils. He had no nose to speak of, only a hole where one would have been, and his lipless mouth revealed sharp, jagged teeth. Hollow cheekbones aided his cadaver-like appearance and his lack of hair revealed a deep crack in his skull which appeared to produce some sort of pus. The hands on her waist were gloved, and from what she could tell from her position, he wore a thick, dark trench coat.

Ystehogol's eyes narrowed at Hellboy who was immediately sent flying backwards into the wall.

"You, my dear, have been difficult to locate," Ystehogol said into her ear, tightening his grip on her.

Kate said nothing and continued to struggle within his grasp. "I believe you must have been quite put out after our last meeting. You put up a good little fight for a human, but don't think you'll walk away again with just a few bumps and bruises."

"What do you want with me?" Kate spat, surprising herself with the venom in her voice, even though the words were shaky.

Ystehogol snickered. "I should be asking you the same question."

Hellboy had risen and was beginning to trudge towards them when Kate stopped him. "Don't!" she yelled. "It won't do any good."

Kate knew Hellboy wasn't going to win this battle with muscle. He was accustomed to fighting brainless, corporeal beings and she didn't want to see him hurt again.

"You care for this demon, do you?" Ystehogol noted, leaning down closer to her. "That's all he is, a demon. He can't care for you in return. It isn't in his nature."

Kate got the distinct impression he was saying this only through her mind, as Hellboy did not seem to react. Ystehogol was using psychological tactics on her, she knew, and she wasn't going to let them work.

He seemed to realize this, for he continued. "You've been studying me, trying to figure me out. I've felt it. How is it you know of me? Are you in league with Trevor Broom?"

Broom? So, there was a connection between Ystehogol and Broom.

When Kate didn't answer, she became aware of him penetrating her thoughts, and desperately tried to remember and apply everything Abe had taught her. She heard Ystehogol laugh derisively behind her, but the laughing ceased. It was working, and somehow, she was blocking some piece of information he was looking for, as he quickly became enraged and threw her to the floor, her glasses falling away and skidding across the room. Not letting her mind wander, she continued to block Ystehogol's presence. It became harder when she could hardly breath and felt invisible hands clasped around her throat.

Suddenly, she was released, and gasped for air. Ystehogol was distracted, but without her glasses, Kate could not see what was going on. She heard a struggle, and heard Hellboy being tossed around the room. When he had righted himself, she could hear Ystehogol howling in frustration. Frantic, Kate searched the floor for her glasses, groping blindly in the darkness. A large crash was followed closely by a guttural growl coming from Hellboy. Kate listened to him emit a pained groan and continued her search desperately, determined to find a way to help him. Finally, her hands folded around something, but it was soft and most definitely not what she had been looking for. Leaning closer, Kate could vaguely see what she had taken hold of; it was an arm and she quickly found she was holding on to Agent Gold.

"Agent Gold!" she yelled, shaking him.

He didn't respond, and she could see his head rolling about limply from side to side as she shook him.

Shocked, she cried out in terror upon finding his dead form in her arms. This seemed to have alerted Ystehogol to her presence once more, as she was abruptly slammed into a fireplace, hitting her head upon solid brick. When she thought she would be thrown again, she heard Ystehogol yell out once more. Faintly, she could make out the outlines of the two, a red blob edging towards the darker figure with glowing eyes. They had come to a standstill, Hellboy advancing towards Ystehogol who appeared to be struggling. He shrieked with anger so loudly that Kate covered her ears, and afterwards she felt he was no longer in the room. Confused and in pain, Kate tried to stand, but fell backwards. Before she could hit the brick once more, she was aware of Hellboy's arms around her, keeping her from falling. His voice was muffled and she could scarcely hear him calling out her name.

Kate tried to respond, but no sound escaped her lips. She watched Hellboy's blurry form reach for a radio, and he said something she couldn't make out. Hellboy picked her up and carried her to the couch, placing her on his lap.

It was then he felt his own health begin to fail him. He hadn't survived the battle without suffering a strong mental attack from his opponent, and it was clearly beginning to take its toll. Slowly, he felt his senses fail him, and he rested his head against the back of the couch. He was so tired, and it was a struggle to stay awake. Sleep won over in the end, and Hellboy went limp, unconscious.

They remained that way, Kate fighting to keep herself lucid and Hellboy unconscious, but still cradling her in his arms until help from the Bureau arrived and discovered them there sitting amongst the devastated room and Agent Gold's body sprawled across the floor.

* * *

**A/N**: It lives! Yes, I _told_ you I wouldn't leave this story unfinished. I deeply apologize for the incredibly LONG time you've had to wait for an update. Life just took off in a direction that left me with no time to write. Well, I'll say it again: there is no way I will not finish this story. I'm having too much fun with it. So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As always, much credit goes to my beta for being incredible. Write a review! Let me know if you loved it, if you hated it, if it needs work, if it was just right, whatever. Feel free to ask me anything about the story, but I won't give anything away that would ruin the upcoming chapters. Thanks for sticking with me, and even if the next update takes a little while I promise it will be there. Review!


	18. Chapter 18

The early morning hours saw no change in Hellboy's condition, and all Kate could do was continue to wait. Sitting pretzel-style in a plastic chair with his coat still wrapped around her, she could only think about him. With her brows furrowed and lines of worry adorning her features, she watched Abe perform a multitude of tasks with highly technical-looking devices all of which were supposed to monitor Hellboy's condition. John stood vigil behind her, his hand resting on her shoulder. Near the door, Professor Broom and Manning were speaking heatedly in hushed tones. Hellboy remained oblivious to all, lying unconscious on the cold, metal table with his mouth slightly open and his eyes closed as he slept. Kate wondered if that was how he looked when he normally slept. He looked peaceful enough to fool her into forgetting just how seriously he was hurt, but only for a moment.

John shifted behind her. "How's your head?" he whispered.

Kate reached up and touched the bandage that was wrapped around the top of her head and winced when she applied pressure to the injury. "I'll be alright," she said, looking up to meet his eyes. "Is there some sort of award for 'second concussion' around here?"

Myers chuckled and took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "He'll be okay, you know," he said. Kate nodded, but was not consoled.

The conversation between Manning and Professor Broom had now grown loud enough for Myers and Kate to hear. "This isn't the first time, and it won't be the last," Manning was saying. "If you can't find a way to tighten the leash on that monstrosity, I'll have to shut this operation down. What are we supposed to say when people are murdered, houses are destroyed, and someone saw a big, red monkey enter the house before the crime was committed? I can't keep coming up with lies, Trevor, and the government is worried that the public is becoming suspicious. Frankly, I don't blame them. That's exactly what's happening because it's getting harder and harder to keep this all a secret. And why? Because of him." He pointed to Hellboy. Broom sighed and leaned on his cane, watching as Manning stormed out of the room.

"Can you believe that?" whispered Kate. "I mean, really. How can he just talk about him like he's some sort of—"

"Freak?" said John. Kate didn't respond. Broom had crossed the room and was now speaking with Abe.

"Why can't Broom stand up to him?" asked Kate.

John leaned down next to her chair. "Manning could shut down the Bureau if he wants to. And we know people still need us. All we can do is go on trying to please Manning and, at the same time, try to get done what we need to get done. It's a tough situation, but we can't let him shut us down."

They were silent as they watched Broom and Abe discussing Hellboy. Kate sighed and removed her glasses to look at them. One of the agents who had arrived at the scene had picked them up and returned them to her. They hadn't managed to survive the brawl; the lenses were cracked down the middle and the frame was nearly snapped in half. Returning them to her face, Kate noted wryly that they were barely holding together across the bridge of her nose. Somehow, this seemed funnier than it was, and Kate found herself suppressing a fit of giggles. John noticed the change in her demeanor and laid a hand on top of her own.

"You okay?" he questioned, looking worried.

An unavoidable smile crept into her features as she addressed him. "Fine."

It was becoming harder to hold back her laughter and she rose from her chair, intent on leaving the solemnity of the current setting. Once in the next room, Kate took a moment to observe the empty space, identical to the room she had just left. She paced for a moment, looking down at the empty metal table where Hellboy was laying in the next room. It was then in her solitude that she succumbed, her wry mirth beginning in chuckles and quickly progressing toward booming laughter. She placed a hand on her forehead and laughed, pacing all the while.

Someone placed a hand on shoulder from behind and she soon found herself facing Abe, his almond eyes searching her beneath the surface. She couldn't speak. Her laughter was so great that it caused her to shake. "Kate," Abe said tentatively.

The sound of her name being spoken alarmed her and she quickly put a hand over her mouth, silencing herself. Her shoulders still shook, but she was no longer laughing.

"I think I need new glasses," she said simply, touching the broken frame. Abe sighed, but did not speak. Nothing needed to be said.

"I'm ready to go back now," she concluded, her voice weak.

Abe stared at her intently for a moment before nodding and leading her back to where Hellboy lay, looking just as he had when she left. Myers had gone. "Manning wanted to see him," explained Abe as soon as Kate had noticed his absence. Kate placed a hand lightly on Abe's elbow and smiled weakly.

Professor Broom was sitting at Hellboy's side, staring down at him. Joining him, Kate followed his gaze to Hellboy's face.

"Will he be alright, Professor?" she asked quietly.

Broom tore his gaze from Hellboy to look at her. "I imagine so," he said. He sounded hoarse, but otherwise he seemed his usual self. Kate wondered how he was able to keep himself composed.

"Will _you_ be alright, Dr. Hayward?" The question startled her.

"It's just a concussion," she replied dismissively.

Broom watched her over the top of his glasses and if Kate hadn't known better, she'd have thought he could read her as easily and accurately as Abe could.

Sighing, she pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers, willing away thoughts of what had happened at Gold's house. "I'll live," she said, placing her hands on her hips. She felt the cool leather of Hellboy's jacket against her palms and shivered. "Is agent Gold really—"

"Yes, doctor, he's dead." His blunt response surprised her until she understood that Broom had guaranteed Gold's safety only a few nights ago.

Kate hesitated . "I don't think any of us understood exactly what we were up against," she said.

Broom gave a curt nod in response.

Kate watched Hellboy's chest rise and fall as he slept. "I wish I could have done something."

Broom chuckled and rested his hand on top of hers. "My dear, Hellboy is quite capable of taking care of himself. There's nothing you could have done. If this had happened to you, doctor, it would have been unlikely you would have survived." He smiled up at her. "I'm glad you're well," he said, patting her hand lightly.

Kate smiled sadly as Broom returned to his post watching over Hellboy. "Professor, get some rest. Abe and I can stay with Hellboy." She told herself that it was the least she could do for Professor Broom since she had not been able to help Hellboy, but something compelled her to stay for other reasons.

Broom looked as though he was about to protest when he seemed to think better of it. Rising from his chair with a groan, he took his cane in his right hand and went to the door, pausing to look back at Hellboy once more before he left the room.

Kate plopped down in the chair where Broom had been sitting. "So, what do you think?" she asked, watching Abe expectantly.

Abe glanced at her over his shoulder. "I can't say when he will wake, but he seems to be doing better than he was a couple of hours ago."

Nodding, Kate leaned back in her chair. Pulling Hellboy's jacket more closely around her, she settled in for a long night of waiting.

XxXxX

Kate was desperately fighting off the urge to succumb to sleep hours later. Abe had left to go examine Gold's living room where the fight had taken place, leaving Kate straining for vigilance in a state of exhaustion.

Sighing, she shifted in her seat and chewed thoughtfully on her bottom lip. She'd been running the scene at Gold's house over in her head ever since Abe left. Ystehogol had some relationship to Broom; clearly there was something he wanted from him. But, if he had been in contact with Broom before, why was it he didn't seem to know about Hellboy? There had been no recognition when they were in the same room together, and it would have been logical to think that Ystehogol had, at some point, penetrated Broom's mind and would have seen Hellboy. Why didn't he recognize him? The answer, Kate concluded, would likely have to come from Broom himself, that is, if he could remember his experiences in the Arctic.

The urge to rest was becoming more powerful, and Kate was just beginning to nod off when a voice startled her.

"Not sleeping on the job, are you?"

Heart racing, Kate recognized Hellboy's gruff voice instantly and stared at him with wide eyes. Hellboy was fully awake and attempting to sit up, groaning as he moved.

"You're okay?" she asked stupidly, shocked to see him suddenly conscious.

Hellboy chuckled and then winced, clutching his side. "Yeah," he breathed, trying not to look pained, "I'm fine."

There was a pause before Kate could react, and finally regaining her senses, she slapped him on the shoulder.

"Ow!"

"What's wrong with you?" asked Kate, giving him an indignant look.

Hellboy stared at her in alarm. "Me? What's wrong with you?"

"I told you not to try and fight him! Why didn't you listen to me?"

Now irritated, Hellboy drew himself up slightly to intimidate her. "Hey, I saved both our asses, didn't I?"

"You were lucky—we were lucky."

The seriousness in her tone rendered Hellboy silent, and his expression softened as he watched her fuming. Uncomfortable under Hellboy's scrutiny, Kate looked at the floor.

"Sorry," she mumbled, fingering a pocket on Hellboy's jacket.

Hellboy glanced at her hand and felt a strange fluttering sensation at the sight of her still wearing his jacket.

He sighed. "How long was I out?"

Visibly relaxing at the change of subject, Kate slumped back in her chair. "I don't know. At least eight hours, I think. Wasn't looking so good."

She glanced at Hellboy who was listening to her with a cocky smile.

"Hey, nothing's gonna beat me any time soon."

Kate allowed herself a small smile and rolled her eyes. "But you believe me now, right? That he's a bigger threat than you thought, and that it'll take more than brawn to win against him," she chided.

Hellboy mumbled incoherently just as Abe walked into the room.

"Well, it's about time, Red," he said as he made his way over to check the machines Hellboy was still hooked up to. "There was no need for you to take all night about it. We've been waiting quite a long time." His eyes sparkled as he turned to look at his old friend.

"I was just enjoying everyone worrying about me, that's all," said Hellboy, winking at him.

Kate stifled a chuckle.

"Everything looks good," said Abe, shifting his attention from the machines to Kate, "no need to worry."

Kate felt her cheeks grow warm and stole a glance at Hellboy who looked curious.

Clearing her throat, she hesitated before she spoke. "We were lucky, I guess, that you had your locator belt on you. Otherwise, who knows how long we would have been there."

Abe perked up. "How is it you two managed to fight off Ystehogol?"

Kate remembered the struggle; she remembered Ystehogol backing away from Hellboy, their forms blurry. It hadn't occurred to her to ask exactly how they had been able to get away.

"Hellboy?" she questioned, looking at him quizzically.

Hellboy smirked. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small pendant, dangling from a chain. The pendant appeared to be a miniature model of a Saint.

"Amulet. Wards off demons and dark entities," he explained, handing it to Kate.

Kate stared at the pendant in her hand and then gazed at Hellboy in amazement. "This?"

Hellboy nodded.

"That was…smart," said Kate.

Hellboy graced her with a Cheshire grin. "So, you're saying I'm capable of both brawn _and_ brain?"

Kate silently handed the amulet back to him. "What I still don't understand," she said, fingering her hair not covered by the bandage, "is why Ystehogol couldn't read me. You're a good teacher Abe, but I don't think I've gotten good enough to be able to block that kind of force, and especially not face to face."

They were silent, each trying to solve how the feat had been accomplished.

It was Hellboy who spoke first.

"I think I know. Kate, you remember that day when we investigated the library, and I slipped that gun into your bag before we went in?"

How could she forget? She still had the gun lying at the bottom of her bag; she was terrified to touch it.

She nodded.

"That wasn't all I slipped in there."

Confused, Kate reached around her for the bag. Never far from her, it was resting underneath her chair, and she pulled it onto her lap, rummaging through the hodgepodge of items inside. Suddenly, her hand rested on something unfamiliar, and she pulled out what resembled a test tube; it was a glass cylinder attached to a chain. Inside the cylinder was a small bone.

"Bone from Saint Dionysius. Gave it to you for protection."

Kate stared at the reliquary. It all made sense.

"Abe, that's why Ystehogol could only leave me a warning that day in the library. That's why he couldn't get the information he wanted from me when he attacked me that night in the hallway, or when we were at Gold's house last night. That's why I've survived each time. It wasn't me, it was this."

Kate grasped the reliquary tightly in her hand. She raised her eyes to Hellboy. "Thank you." It was spoken gravely.

Her small hand found his. Hellboy, unable to speak, merely nodded.

"Abe," said Kate, and her hand left Hellboy's.

Abe, who was looking fixedly at Hellboy, jerked his head toward Kate.

"I think he's after Broom. He asked me about him. It seemed really important to him. I wonder if…" She paused, putting together the pieces.

All of Ystehogol's victims had been B.P.R.D. agents; they'd be the only ones who would know about Professor Broom's whereabouts. Ystehogol must have searched for anyone with memories of Broom and found all of the retired agents.

She looked at Abe who nodded. "I think that's exactly it, Kate."

"What?" asked Hellboy, looking back and forth between the two of them.

"But, couldn't he just have contacted Broom himself? Why go through those agents to get to him?" Kate questioned.

"It seems it would be safe to say that Ystehogol, for whatever reason, cannot make a connection to Broom himself. That will have to be determined as we learn more about this Arctic excursion and what happened between the Professor and Ystehogol."

Kate felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Broom still couldn't remember enough to tell them what had happened to him. How were they supposed to figure everything out with so much information missing?

"Wait a minute, wait," said Hellboy, holding up his hands between Kate and Abe. "The retired agents? That's who you're talking about?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "Keep up, will you?"

In an attempt to look angry, Hellboy directed a glare at her which was more comical than serious, and fell silent.

"If Ystehogol wanted Broom that badly though, wouldn't he already be here? I mean, those agents would all know the location of the B.P.R.D. and he'd know how to get here by now," said Kate.

Abe shook his head, but it was Hellboy who answered. "The Bureau moved. Twenty years ago we were over in Newark. We moved to Trenton later."

Kate released a slow breath and covered her face with her hands. "Oh my God…" she breathed, her voice muffled. She looked up at Abe. "That may just have saved his life. There aren't any retired agents from this location?"

"No, not yet," said Abe.

"You're forgetting," added Hellboy, "that it hasn't been any old retired agent he's targeting—it's the ones on that list who knew about the excursion."

Kate _had_ completely forgotten.

"They all knew about that trip and why he was going."

"So, Ystehogol clearly wants to confront Broom about something related to that trip," said Kate.

Then a thought struck her. She remembered the Poe poem, '_The spirits of the dead who stood in life before thee are again in death around thee and their will shall then overshadow thee_.' Threatening...

"Revenge," she whispered.

Kate stared at Abe and Hellboy, waiting for a reaction. When neither of them spoke, she sighed. "Don't you get it? He wants revenge. Something happened between Broom and Ystehogol in the Arctic. For all we know, Broom could have done something to him to make him angry, and he's trying to find him."

Hellboy watched her steadily. "No, that couldn't—"

"He warned me." Kate held eye contact with him for a few moments before he scratched the back of his neck and shrugged.

"Maybe," he responded simply.

It occurred to Kate then that Hellboy was clearly worried for Broom. The notion of Ystehogol taking revenge on Broom was not a comforting one, and Kate had been sitting there trying vigorously to convince him that Ystehogol was trying to kill his father.

Abe chose his timing tactfully. "Well, I might as well notify Professor Broom about your condition," he said abruptly.

Before he left, he placed a hand on Hellboy's shoulder. "Good to have you back, Brother Red," Abe said warmly. Hellboy nodded and watched him leave.

He now seemed thoroughly uncomfortable, and Kate wondered what had caused his change of mood. Well, aside from Abe blatantly leaving them alone together, she mused.

"Hellboy," she said softly.

Hellboy turned to look at her. His expression was oddly blank.

"I, uh…you know we'll fix this, right? Broom will be okay—"

"Yeah, I know."

Kate watched her hands in her lap. "I didn't mean to suggest that—"

"Don't worry about it."

Still focused on her lap, she heard Hellboy shift positions painfully. When she looked at him, he had raised himself up enough to be able to turn and completely face her, sitting on the metal table. His clothes were torn in places, the result of his struggle at Gold's house. His face and arms were covered in cuts. For a fleeting moment Kate thought to reach out and touch a small gash on his cheek, but the only sign of this idea coming to her was a small twitch of her hand which she tried to cover by putting her hands in the pockets of his jacket.

"I should really go find John and let him know you're awake," she whispered, rising from her chair.

She had begun to walk away when she remembered the jacket. Slipping it off and shivering when the air hit her skin, she handed the article to Hellboy. He took it gently, never taking his eyes off her, and nodded in thanks.

"Will you be okay if I leave you?" asked Kate.

Hellboy hesitated, opening his mouth and then closing it. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

Nodding, Kate went to the door. Before she could step outside, Hellboy's voice brought her to an abrupt halt.

"Just tolerable, huh?" he said with a smirk.

Kate shrugged and smiled. "You've grown on me."

With that, she left, leaving Hellboy staring at the spot where she had stood for quite some time.

* * *

**A/N: **A couple of things:

First of all, I'M SORRY! Yeah, it's been a long time since I've updated, and I know I'm a horrible person for that. I don't often get the time I need to sit down and work with this story, but, as I've said before, however long it takes, this story WILL be finished. That being said, I really want to thank all of you who continue to review and add this story to your favorites/alerts. Thank you for giving me the incentive to make time to write this! I really love writing these characters, and it's great to know that what goes on in my head is actually entertaining for all of you!

Alright, moving on. Kudos to those of you who caught the reference to the movies with the change of location of the Bureau. For those of you who didn't notice, in the first film the B.P.R.D. is said to be located in Newark, while the second film claims it to be in Trenton. Mind you, the building is the same, but I suppose they didn't think about it from the first film to the second. Just a fluke, I guess, but I wanted to reference that here.

Also, I know the past couple of chapters (including this one) have been fairly plot oriented and a little heavy, so thanks for sticking with me through all of this and we'll get to some lighter stuff in the next chapter, I promise.

As always, please review! It absolutely makes my day to hear from all of you! And yeah, over 20,000 hits and more than 200 reviews! Wow! I honestly never expected anyone to be that interested in this when I began, and I'm so thrilled! Thank you! You guys are amazing!

Thanks for reading!


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